Xcel Energy considering power shutoffs in West Texas due to fire, wind conditions on Tuesday

As the winds and low humidity continue to rage in West Texas, Xcel Energy is prepared to temporarily shut off power to some customers to mitigate the risks of wildfires in New Mexico and West Texas.

According to Xcel, the energy provider will turn off power to 140 customers in eastern New Mexico on Monday. This temporary power shutoff — known as a Public Safety Power Shutoff — is a targeted measure of last resort when other methods are insufficient to ensure public safety.

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“Implementing a targeted Public Safety Power Shutoff is a step we take seriously as it’s a last resort to protect our customers and communities,” said Adrian Rodriguez, president of Xcel Energy in New Mexico and Texas. “As always, our crews will work as quickly as they can to restore power following this event and other weather-related outages.”

Xcel stated it is also likely that power will be turned off to reduce wildfire risk for some Texas South Plains customers, starting the morning of Tuesday, March 4, with parts of west Lubbock, Wolfforth, Lorenzo, Slaton, Southland, Levelland, Tahoka, Post, Ralls are all under consideration as of 1 p.m. Monday.

Xcel stated that if a PSPS does occur and it is safe to begin work to restore power, it may take several hours to days for customers’ power to be restored because a crew must patrol the entire power line to ensure it’s safe for that power line to be re-energized. Crews are positioned to begin restoration efforts as quickly as possible once conditions have improved and it is safe for them to begin inspecting power lines.

Customers can look up their addresses online to find out if they may be subject to the PSPS event.

Critical fire conditions on Texas Panhandle, South Plains

Lubbock, Amarillo and much of the central and eastern Panhandle-South Plains were under a red flag warning through Monday, with sustained winds above 25 mph and gusts topping 40 mph helping fuel dangerous fire conditions. A high wind watch is in effect for Tuesday, with a west wind of 20 to 30 mph becoming west at 30 to 40 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 55 mph.

On Sunday, the Texas A&M Forest Service elevated its Wildland Fire Preparedness Level to Level 3 out of 5 due to due to continued hot, dry conditions and an increase in current/expected wildfire activity, according to a social media statement from the Forest Service.

More: State readies crews, power outages possible for critical fire weather in West Texas, NM

Critical fire weather conditions are expected in West Texas near Abilene, Childress, Lubbock, Midland and San Angelo.

“We are monitoring the situation and stand ready to respond to requests for assistance,” the statement reads.

Xcel utility pole contributed to past Panhandle wildfire

After record-breaking wildfires last year in the Panhandle, Xcel Energy acknowledged a decayed utility pole contributed to what became the largest fire in state history.

The company has since faced multiple lawsuits in connection with the fires.

This winter, Xcel Energy files Xcel Energy filed its initial System Resiliency Plan with the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT), with proposed investments to upgrade and strengthen the electric grid and ensure electricity for about 280,000 homes and businesses in Texas, according to previous Avalanche-Journal and Globe-News reporting.

More:Xcel Energy files resiliency proposal with Public Utility Commission

The utility said in a company news release that the plan is tailored to the needs of the Texas Panhandle and South Plains and aims to make its power systems more resilient against extreme weather and wildfires.