Southern California Edison apologized Tuesday for having sent out an erroneous set of messages about a possible intentional power outage somewhere in the Malibu area.
Company spokesman Dave Eisenhauer said it did not mean to transmit the “PSPS” message, at about noon Tuesday, to some customers in the 90265 zip code.
Last Friday, SCE began telling public safety agencies that it might have to shut off power on the Cuthbert Circuit, the set of overhead and underground lines that serve the Point Dume, Paradise Cove, Ramirez Canyon and Winding Way West neighborhoods.
Downcoast winds of 30 miles per hour were forecast, just below the threshold for an intentional blackout aimed at preventing overhead power line failure caused by blowing debris, such as tree limbs.
Cuthbert was the only Malibu circuit threatened with the Public Safety Power Shutoff, or “PSPS,” last weekend. For three years, SCE has been allowed to implement PSPS shutdowns to prevent fires and limit its liability.
By Sunday afternoon, however, the weather forecast had improved and the possibility of PSPS actually occurring had diminished.
The California Public Utilities Commission has ordered SCE to reduce the number of false alarms and to also reduce the number of actual intentional blackouts.