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October 24, 2019

California Utilities to Cut Power to Hundreds of Thousands Over Wildfire Fears
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California's largest energy utilities are planning a new round of power
cuts that will bring blackouts to hundreds of thousands of homes and
businesses over the next two days. Pacific Gas & Electric says dry and
windy conditions are forcing it to cut power to more than a half-million
people in Northern California in order to prevent a repeat of last
year's devastating Camp Fire, which killed 85 people after poorly
maintained PG&E transmission lines sparked the blaze. Meanwhile Southern
California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric are planning to shut off
power to more than 300,000 customers, after a fire in the western Los
Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades damaged multimillion-dollar
hillside homes. Climate scientists say greenhouse gas emissions are
making California hotter and drier, leading to bigger and more frequent
fires.


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