To prevent forest fires, PG & E preemptively reduces energy to thousands of people in California: NPR

Updated at 1:18 pm AND

To try to avoid the wildfires that ravaged California, Pacific Gas and Electric Company warned that it could shut off power preemptively for approximately 87,000 customers in 12 counties.

Weather conditions in these areas are expected to be fire-prone, including low humidity and gusting winds of up to 60 mph.

Temporary closures began Sunday night and the company said most households would have electricity Monday night, with blackouts continuing until Tuesday.

According to the member station KQED:

"More than 17,000 customers in the counties of Sonoma, Lake and Napa, and 42,000 customers in Amador, Calaveras and El Dorado counties, have been affected by proactive blackouts," said the utility.

PG & E said that monitoring conditions in Butte, Sierra, Placer, Nevada, Plumas and Yuba counties could also cut off power to these communities.

This is the first time the company has shut down power to prevent fires, KQED reported. And this comes just days after officials in the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection determined that the Cascade fire in Yuba County, which burned nearly 20,000 hectares and killed four people, was started by "sagging power lines coming in contact with strong wind." The investigators said that at least one of the lines belonged to PG & E.

"Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and the communities we serve," said Pat Hogan, senior vice president of electrical operations at PG & E, in a statement. "We know how much our customers depend on the electricity service and we made the decision to cut the power as a last resort, given the extreme fire danger conditions faced by these communities."

Here are the communities affected by the shutdown warning, according to the electricity supplier:

Butte County (Berry Creek, Brush Creek, Clipper Mills, Feather Falls, Forbestown, Oroville)

Sierra County (Alleghany, Downieville, Goodyears Bar, Pike City, Sierra City)

Placer County (Alta, Applegate, Auburn, Baxter, Colfax, Dutch Apartment, Emigrant Gap, Foresthill, Gold Run, Loomis, Meadow Vista, Weimar)

Nevada County (Chicago Park, Grass Valley, Nevada City, San Juan North, Penn Valley, Rough and Ready, Soda Springs, Washington)

El Dorado County (Aukum, Camino, Coloma, Cool, Diamond Springs, El Dorado, Fair Play, Garden Valley, Georgetown, Greenwood, Grizzly Flats, Kelsey, Kyburz, Mount Aukum, Omo Ranch, Pacific House, Placerville, Pollock Pines, Shingle Springs, Silver Fork, Somerset, Strawberry, Twin Bridges)

Amador County (Fiddletown, Jackson, Pine Grove, Pioneer, Plymouth, Sutter Creek, Volcano)

Plumas County (The Gate)

Calaveras County (Glencoe, Mokelumne Hill, Mountain Ranch, Flat Railroad, West Point, Wilseyville)

Yuba County (Brownsville, Camptonville, Challenge, Dobbins, Marysville, Oregon House, Strawberry Valley)

Lake County (Clearlake, Clearlake Oaks, Clearlake Park, Cobb, Finley, Hidden Valley Lake, Kelseyville, Lakeport, Lower Lake, Middletown)

Napa County (Angwin, Calistoga, Deer Park, Berryessa Lake, Napa, Pope Valley, St. Helena)

Sonoma County (Cloverdale, Geyserville, Healdsburg, Santa Rosa)

The utility said earlier this month that even though it had taken "many actions before the 2017 wildfires," dangerous weather conditions and persistent destructive fires clearly show that "our state has need new complete solutions ".

"Extreme weather, years of drought and millions of dead trees are feeding an unprecedented risk of forest fires," said PG & E at the time. "In light of this, we recognize that we must all do even more to help reduce the risk of wildfires and we are committed to working with our state and community partners to develop comprehensive safety solutions for the future." l & # 39; future. "

Not everyone was happy with the latest PG & E actions. For example, Joan Sato, 69, of Lake County, told The San Francisco she uses to treat sleep apnea would not work without electricity.

"I'm really angry because it's totally irresponsible to shoot this thing," Sato said. "I will have to drive to a hotel and stay in a hotel where there is electricity, but, without lights, it will not be a safe thing."

The newspaper reported that the electricity company had previously refused to turn off the electricity, "she says that poses its own risks and could leave police, firefighters and hospitals without electricity for a while. emergency".

Other officials have rented the move from PG & E. "With so many localized fires on power lines, when we have nights where the wind will blow at 50 or 60 miles to the hour it makes sense, "said David Rabbitt, Sonoma County Supervisor. the Chronicle.

Several schools were also closed Monday, reported The Sacramento Bee.