VIDEO: There were times on Monday when hundreds of homes experienced unplanned electric outages across metro Denver. Those outages, which could be seen on Xcelโs outage page, happened as a Red Flag Warning went into effect during the day.
The National Weather Service said high winds and dry conditions are a big concern. โThat could pose concerns for wildland fire growth so if a spark or a fire were to occur. This wind could carry the embers of those fires quicker and pose concerns for firefighters trying to contain those situations,โ National Weather Service Boulder Warning Coordination Meteorologist Greg Heavener said.
To help deal with the wind, Xcel Energy said it implemented enhanced powerline safety settings. The goal, a spokesperson said, was to stop fires from starting. โWhat these settings do is they put our lines in a more sensitive setting so that if a tree or an object were to come in contact with our line, it would shut off, to ensure that the flow of electricity would stop and it would lower the chance of ignition from our power lines,โ Xcel Energy Director of Community Relations Andrew Holder said.
