Edison highlights preparedness for residents impacted by planned and unplanned outages
Gavin Nguyen
CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. (KESQ) – Power outages, planned or unplanned, are an obvious inconvenience to residents impacted by them.
From food spoiling in the refrigerator to a lack of air conditioning for potentially hours at a time, utilities maintain it’s ultimately a necessity to keep the grid operating safely.
Over the past week, a number of residents, ranging everywhere from Palm Springs to the High Desert, have reported outages that left them with more questions than answers to our newsroom.
One of those residents, from the Yucca Mesa area, reported nearly daily power shutoffs that would happen for an hour or two, then turn back on. He reported his power company, Southern California Edison, didn’t notify him or his neighbors about the outages or any repair timelines.
Southern California Edison confirmed with News Channel 3 that those outages were unplanned, but crews have been working diligently to repair the issues. They said the outages can be caused by a number of factors, and repair timelines differ due to that variance.
We took those concerns straight to the utility company.
“How do you balance that summertime heat with keeping people safe?” I asked.
“It’s exactly that,” responded Scott Johnson, a spokesperson with Edison. “The balance to make certain that the infrastructure is in good working condition… We try to identify times and days that will be the least impactful upon our customers.”
Sometimes they have the luxury of being flexible to identify those times, but there are other circumstances where the utility can’t pick and choose.
“Obviously, to maintain a system as wide and vast as Southern California Edison is, it does take a amount of maintenance and project upkeep. In addition to that, we also implement what’s referred to as public safety power shutoffs, which are planned outages in the event that the conditions are possibly whether it be heat, the lack of of rain or humidity or dryness that could possibly lead to a fire,” said Johnson.
Other times, a power line can be damaged by things like wind, an animal, debris, or a person driving into a pole. Regardless of the cause, Johnson said teams are ready to respond as fast as possible around the clock.
He pointed to being sure you’re signed up with your utility company for notifications on planned outages and repair timelines. Those options include text or e-mail notifications and checking outage maps. The utility also sends letters to affected customers and lists planned outages on billing statements.
The utility company said the best practice ahead of any outage – planned or unplanned – is to be prepared, especially for our desert communities where temperatures soar well into the triple digits during the summer.
Edison listed a number of upcoming maintenance outages, including spots in Indian Wells, Cathedral City, and Palm Springs, that will impact residents this week. You can find more information on its outage map.
Edison provided a list of items that you should keep handy before an outage strikes. That includes an emergency kit, equipped with flashlights, batteries, a first aid kit, and of course, water. They also said a generator is a good idea. They suggest running it outdoors and keeping a heavy-duty extension cord handy.