Private electric utilities in the Pacific Northwest are planning tens of millions of dollars in upgrades to reduce the risk that their power lines could spark wildfires during extreme weather. Utilities such as Pacific Power, Avista, Idaho Power, Portland General Electric and Puget Sound Energy are either required to or are voluntarily submitting wildfire mitigation plans. Read More
Avista says it plans to cut power to parts of its coverage area Tuesday as a way to reduce demand for power. Spokane saw rolling outages Monday, and will likely see more on Tuesday. Residents of the Tri-Cities region have been warned they could also see outages this week for up to four hours at a time. Read More