13K RivCo Homes Without Power, 70K More Under Shutoff Warning: SCE

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — Over 13,500 Riverside County Southern California Edison customers went dark Thursday morning, and almost 70,000 more are under consideration for the same, as the utility initiated its Power Safety Shutoff Measures due to the growing Santa Ana winds.

The power shutoff in Southwest Riverside County, Temecula, Murrieta, Wildomar, Winchester, and Hemet began at approximately 3 p.m. and would remain that way during the Power Safety Shutoff precaution. More homes and businesses in the Pass Area and western portions of the county were also affected by the outage or were in projected shutoff zones.

An exact time for power restoration was not immediately available; however, SCE reports that they will begin restoring power once the extreme fire weather eases.

The power shutoff affected numerous businesses without backup generators, including grocery stores and homes. Pharmacies, area gyms, and gas stations were closed.

According to spokesperson Gabriella Ornelas, the National Weather Service has predicted gusts of up to 60 miles per hour, which led to SCE implementing the measures.

"We implement power safety shutoffs as a tool of last resort due to public safety concerns," she told Patch. Power Safety Shutoff areas are identified due to danger during Santa Ana windstorms and low levels of rain.

The power shutoff impacted a wide swath of Riverside County and was not expected to return through much of Thursday until fire conditions eased, according to SCE.

"Note that this map (below) will reflect 'power off' until all customers on your circuit segment have had their power restored," they said.

Residents can check their addresses to see if their home is affected by the Power Safety Shutoff service.

According to SCE, it may take up to 8 hours to fully restore power when fire conditions end. Still, it may take longer if daylight is needed for safe inspections or if we find damage.

"Circuits may cause one neighbor to have power and another neighbor to be without," Ornelas said. "Shutting people's power off is a matter of last resort during this type of weather."