Gusty Santa Ana winds prompt possible power cutoffs, fire danger in Ventura County

Southern California Edison officials may shut off power in parts of Ventura County as Santa Ana winds increased the risk of wildfires heading into the weekend.

Gusty winds and dry conditions can mean wildfires start easier and spread faster, and the National Weather Service issued a red-flag warning for most of the county. It is set to take effect from Saturday morning through Sunday afternoon.

Winds are expected to pick up Friday night and peak on Saturday, said Ryan Kittell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard. Gusts could reach 40 to 60 mph.

“Folks need to be careful with anything that might start a fire,” he said.

Edison was monitoring circuits throughout the region, including roughly two dozen locally. Officials said power could be shut off to prevent electrical equipment from sparking a fire – outages called Public Safety Power Shutoffs, or PSPS. As of early Friday afternoon, monitored areas included nearly 24,000 local customers in spots around Simi Valley, Camarillo, Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, Santa Paula and Fillmore.

Windy conditions are expected to taper off Sunday. But breezy conditions and warmer-than-normal temperatures could continue in some spots through much of next week.

More information about potential power shut offs is available at sce.com/psps.

Local information about any outages and community resource centers is available at vcemergency.com. To sign up for emergency alerts from the sheriff's Office of Emergency Services, go to readyventuracounty.org/vc-alert/.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ventura County power outages possible amid winds, dry weather