California residents get warning of intentional SCE outage, ask why power lines still aren't underground

Residents in Santa Barbara are bracing for another possible intentional blackout after Southern California Edison warned it could shut off power during high winds and fire-prone conditions.

The alert revived the question: If these shutoffs keep happening, why are so many power lines still above ground?

Here's what to know

One resident used a Reddit thread on the site's r/SantaBarbara community to vent about the approach. 

"Instead of warning us you are going to turn the power off because of a heat wave or wind, how about you upgrade, update, or put your power lines underground. It's not like you don't make enough money!" the original poster wrote.

The post also included the text of an Edison notice, which read, "High winds and fire conditions are forecast from Monday afternoon through Wednesday morning. We may have to shut off your power to decrease risk of wildfires. We are working to reduce the number of customers affected and will keep you updated."

Public safety power shutoffs, or PSPS events, are meant to prevent utility equipment from sparking fires when dry conditions and strong winds create severe risk. But residents surely don't appreciate having their power turned off.

Commenters said outages have become a recurring part of life, especially in foothill communities.

"I feel like we should get free power for how often the shutdowns happen for us in the foothills. Between brownouts, construction, upgrades, transformer pops, it's getting ridiculous," one wrote.

Another user added, "Wish we could get rid of this monopoly."

Others agreed with the OP that SCE should take more steps rather than ask their customers to prepare for the loss of power. "Seriously! Put the power lines underground," someone said.

Another user argued: "These should be renamed. They are not public safety power shutoffs. They are corporate liability power shutoffs. I'll bet the idea for these PSPS originated in the legal department at SCE." 

This response reflects distrust among customers who feel they are paying for unreliable service. Many residents see their preparation as an insufficient substitute for infrastructure upgrades.

Where can I learn more?

For a broader look at how wildfire risk, planned outages, and grid strain are colliding, these articles cover blackout warnings in California and Arizona as well as West Coast shutoff policies.

• In Northern California, wildfire fears put thousands at risk of intentional blackouts.

• In Northern Arizona, APS warned up to 10,000 customers they could lose power for a day.

• Across West Coast states, utilities made deliberate power cuts as wildfire danger surged.

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