California Starting Another Mass Blackout to Avoid Wildfires
- Shutoffs are due to start in Sierra Foothills before expanding
- Gusts set to restrengthen after the weekend, forecaster says
Firefighters fight a fire in Newhall, California on Oct. 11.
Photographer: Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images
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Parts of California will go dark Wednesday afternoon in a mass blackout that could eventually leave more than a million people without power. And more shutoffs could come over the weekend.
PG&E Corp. will begin cutting power to 179,000 customers in 17 northern and central California counties on Wednesday afternoon in an attempt to keep its power lines from sparking wildfires amid hot, dry winds. In Southern California, Edison International is warning that it may cut service to another 308,000, and Sempra Energy is considering a shutoff in the San Diego area. In all, about 1.5 million people may be affected.