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California Fire Threat Returns With Diablo Winds and Power Cuts

(Bloomberg) -- Dangerous winds are forecast to rake across the hills and valleys of drought-parched California, raising the risk of catastrophic wildfires and prompting the state’s big utilities to warn of preemptive power cuts. 
Bloomberg
By Bloomberg
10 Oct
Northern California Fire Forces Evacuations In Lake TahoeFire burns through trees during the Caldor Fire in Kirkwood, California, U.S., on Friday, Sept. 3, 2021. The Caldor Fire, which ignited Aug. 14 has burned at least 212,907 acres, or more than 332 square miles, and containment stood at 29% as of Friday, Cal Fire said in its morning update. Photographer: Eric Thayer/Bloomberg

By Mark Chediak

Word Count: 327
The National Weather Service has issued a red flag warning for critical fire conditions in California’s Central Valley where wind gusts could reach as high as 50 miles (80 kilometers) per-hour starting late Sunday through Tuesday.

The risk that dry gales could blow tree branches into their live power lines prompted PG&E Corp. and Edison International’s Southern California Edison to notify about 60,000 customers about possible preemptive power cuts starting early Monday.

The warnings come as California enters its peak wildfire season, when so-called Diablo and Santa Ana winds come roaring from the east over its hillsides and through canyons, creating conditions ripe for the rapid spread of blazes. The gusts have fanned some of the state’s deadliest wildfires including the 2018 Camp Fire that killed 85 people and leveled the town of Paradise.

Read More: California Fire Threat Mounts as Dry Winds Start to Rise

The fire danger is especially high this year as much of the state remains in the grip of a severe drought that has left grassy hillsides and forests bone dry and vulnerable to burn. Through Oct. 6, California’s 7,883 fires have charred just under 2.5 million acres, compared with more than 4 million acres for the same time period last year.

PG&E said Saturday it may need to turn off power to 44,000 customers in 32 counties across Northern California starting Monday morning, the biggest shutoff of the year for the utility. Southern California Edison said about 15,000 customers in Los Angeles, Ventura and Kern Counties were at risk for possible power cuts, according to a posting on its website.

California’s big utilities have been using the controversial practice of preemptively cutting power ahead of windstorms after th

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