Edhat Staff
Update by the edhat staff
October 12, 2023
Southern California Edison is no longer considering turning off power in Santa Barbara County as of Thursday, October 12, according to the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management.
This page will be updated if conditions change.
Public Safety Power Shutoffs Possible in Parts of Santa Barbara County This Week
Update by the City of Santa Barbara
October 11, 2023
Southern California Edison (SCE) has notified customers that it is considering a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) in the eastern area of the City of Santa Barbara and into parts of Montecito, due to an increased risk for wildfires. This outage may begin as soon as 3 p.m. on Wednesday, October 11, 2023, though it may occur earlier or later depending on actual weather conditions. If you live or work in or near this area, you should make preparations for a possible multiple day power outage.
SCE will have a Community Crew Vehicle in the Franklin Community Center (1136 E. Montecito St.) parking lot from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday, October 11. Community Crew Vehicles are dispatched within affected communities to provide essential customer service during PSPS emergencies. When activated, they also supply Customer Resiliency Kits and other helpful resources and programs.
Call Southern California Edison at 1-800-661-1911 or visit https://www.sce.com/outage-center/check-outage-status for more info on this potential outage.
The Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Management encourages the public to register for the County’s local ReadySBC Alerts system. If you haven’t registered for emergency alerts, register now at ReadySBC.org. Receive local emergency alerts via text, phone call, and email. The City is working closely with our community partners to monitor this evolving situation. ReadySBC.org is also a helpful resource to track updates from SCE. We will work diligently to share information with the public as it is made available to us.
Additional SCE Contact Information:
Outage-specific customer service issues: 1-800-661-1911
Billing and service inquiries: 1-800-684-8123
PSPS event status: sce.com/PSPS
Non-PSPS outages: sce.com/outages
Update customer contact information: www.sce.com/pspsalerts
Information on customer programs and other resources: sce.com/wildfire
By the edhat staff
October 10, 2023
The National Weather Service (NWS) reports that winds will be increasing on Tuesday and Wednesday for the Central Coast, Interior, and I-5 corridor.
The wind event is expected to kick off with northerly sundowners on Tuesday transitioning to Santa Ana winds on Wednesday evening through Thursday.
Gusts of 50-60 mph are expected in the Refugio/Gaviota areas on Tuesday evening with the same level of gusts expected on Wednesday evening in the Montecito hills.
NWS alerts residents to expect elevated to brief critical fire weather conditions on Wednesday and Thursday. Now is the time to avoid creating sparks of any kind.
Due to the upcoming wind event, Southern California Edison is considering a Public Safety Power Shutoff in the eastern area of the City of Santa Barbara and into parts of Montecito.
This could take effect as soon as Wednesday (October 11).
For more info, call Southern California Edison at 1-800-655-4555 or visit sce.com/outage-center/
In the “greatest nation” on earth we have to shut down power if it’s going to be too windy.
I don’t remember them doing this before, perhaps because they got found liable for that fire?
I forget which one but it is ridiculous that they can’t sustain the integrity of the grid and guarantee spark free transmission, especially since if they cut power people are much more likely to use gas appliances and open flames.