On Tuesday, July 23, 2024, NWE said that it is in the earliest stage of its Public Safety Power Shutoff plan that involves monitoring weather. NWE does not have any outages planned at that time – it was simply a monitoring update.
NWE says that Public Safety Power Shutoffs are a measure of last resort, and part of its Wildfire Mitigation Plan that includes strategies to prevent power lines from sparking a wildfire.
Public Safety Power Shutoffs are used only in extreme situations during severe fire weather.
NWE has since clarified that if a planned power outage is needed for public safety, it is most likely to occur in wildfire-prone rural areas. The impact on Great Falls residents is likely to be minimal compared to rural locations, according to a news release from Kate Brewer, the
Community Risk Reduction Manager for Great Falls Fire Rescue.
NorthWestern Energy says that if an area will be affected by a potential Public Safety Power Shutoff, they will notify residents numerous times throughout the process by automated phone calls and emails before power is turned off and after it is restored.
NorthWestern Energy said on Wednesday: "There are no Public Safety Power Shutoffs planned at this time. Based on assessment of the forecasted conditions, we are confident that a Public Safety Power Shutoff is not imminent for any of our Montana customers at this time. As we do throughout the fire season, we will continue to monitor, analyze and assess wildfire conditions."
Here are the steps involved in a Public Safety Power Shutoff:
- Monitoring - As fire danger increases, NorthWestern Energy will closely monitor the situation and assess the need for a Public Safety Power Shutoff. As soon as we enter the "PSPS monitoring" phase, our website will be updated with information, and we will reach out to local community agencies, such as police, sheriff and fire departments.
- Watch - When we reach the stage of "PSPS watch," customers who may be impacted will receive an automated call from NorthWestern. We will continue to update our website and reach out to media organizations and community leaders.
- Alert - If a PSPS becomes imminent, we advance to the "PSPS alert" stage. At this point customers will be contacted again via a call campaign. Community members, media and stakeholders will be notified as well.
- Shutoff In-Effect - When we de-energize our power lines, we will continue to update our website as we monitor the situation.
- Closeout - When we restore power, impacted customers will receive another automated call to let them know power has been restored.
People are encouraged to make sure NorthWestern Energy has their most current contact information by logging into My Energy Account (link) or by calling NWE at 1-888-467-2669 .
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The City of Great Falls encourages residents to review information about NorthWestern Energy’s Public Safety Power Shutoff Plan, its stages of a Public Safety Power Shutoff Event, and Public Safety Power Shutoff Map at the NWE website.
While NorthWestern Energy’s Public Safety Power Shutoff messaging is more likely for areas outside Great Falls, being prepared for emergencies such as power outages or wildfires is strongly encouraged. Households should discuss evacuation routes, meeting locations, emergency supplies and how they will receive emergency alerts and warnings.
(1st REPORT, JULY 23) NorthWestern Energy announced Tuesday it is monitoring weather conditions in Montana for a possible "public safety power shutoff."
"At this time, we are closely watching weather forecasts calling for high winds combined with high temperatures and low humidity forecasted for Thursday afternoon, July 25," the company said in a news release. "We have entered the 1.1 Monitoring Stage of our Public Safety Power Shutoff Plan."
There are no planned power outages at this time, the company said.
"This is the earliest stage of the plan. If extreme weather conditions threaten our ability to safely operate the electrical grid, we will turn off power to help protect public safety. This is called a Public Safety Power Shutoff, or PSPS."
Wednesday is going to be the hottest day with high temps ranging from 97° to 106° in central Montana and 105° to 110° in eastern Montana. Scattered thunderstorms with gusty winds and lightning will develop Wednesday afternoon lasting late into Wednesday night.
A cold front slowly treks across Montana Thursday afternoon through Friday morning. The wind will kick up ahead of the front Thursday morning. Gusts in excess of 40mph will be fairly widespread across central Montana.
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Critical fire-weather conditions are expected across the area the next couple of days due to dry thunderstorms and strong winds. The Storm Prediction Center is forecasting a possible "widespread and potentially significant lightning event" over the northern Rockies Wednesday and Wednesday night. These storms will track into central Montana late Wednesday night and could lead to new fire starts.
If a customer’s power is set to be shut off, NorthWestern said it will contact the customer directly by email and/or phone at the email address or phone number they have on file.
"We continue to watch the forecasted wind event. If a planned power outage is needed for public safety, it is most likely in wildfire-prone areas outside Butte, Helena, Great Falls or Bozeman."
