Some polling places in California could be affected by power shutoffs that utility companies will implement over the next few days to reduce fire risks as dangerous winds intensify across the state.

But the state’s largest utility companies say voting and vote counting should not be interrupted, given emergency preparations that are underway, coordinated with local election officials.

More than 170,000 customers in California could experience power outages at some point this week, as two consecutive offshore wind events have caused widespread outages. red flag and fire weather warnings. Those warnings will be in effect for some areas from Monday through Thursday.

As of Monday morning, 36 customers in Los Angeles County had been shut off “due to increased wildfire risk,” Southern California Edison reported. reported.

But that’s just the beginning. Customers across the region, including about 35,000 in each of Los Angeles, Riverside and Ventura counties and about 50,000 in San Bernardino County, could experience outages on Monday, and possibly Wednesday and Thursday as well, according to David Eisenhauer , SCE spokesperson.

In Northern California, Pacific Gas & Electric is considering shutting off power to at least 15,000 customers in 12 counties on Tuesday, mostly in Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Tehama counties, said Jeff Smith, a spokesman for the company. public service company. On Wednesday and Thursday, outages were considered likely in 17 counties due to “strong winds and dry conditions.” PG&E reported.

Early voting continues Monday at polling places across the state, and on Tuesday, voters can cast your votes in person at hundreds of polling locations. The verification and counting of votes is expected to take at least a few days, if not weeks.

Six early voting locations in Southern California could face outages on Monday, Eisenhauer said, but none should see their operations interrupted.

“We know how important it is for our communities to exercise their right to vote,” Eisenhauer said. “We have worked with county governments to address any potential (outages) using county backup plans. … We have additional generators on standby if they need them.”

The utility has no outages planned for Tuesday, when there is expected to be a lull in winds in the south, Eisenhauer said. He did not immediately know if any ballot processing centers could be affected later in the week, when more outages would be possible.

In Northern California, two voting centers, one in Lake County and another in Santa Clara County, are in the area being considered for outages on Tuesday, Smith said, but they are not expected to be shut down. the energy until after the polls close. Regardless, he said, the utility is working to ensure backup power generation is available for the two polling locations, as wind conditions and plans are always subject to change.

“We will continue to monitor as long as the weather is there,” Smith said. He said the utility is in constant communication with election officials and the two locations that could experience outages.

No ballot processing centers were located in the area of ​​potential outages, Smith said.

As of Monday, much of the mountains of Los Angeles and Ventura counties remain under a red flag warning (an alert for extreme fire weather) due to strong Santa Ana winds and low humidity. North and northeast winds could reach up to 50 mph, with the strongest gusts in the higher elevations of Simi Valley and San Fernando Valley.

Areas covered by the red flag warning “will be at increased risk of rapid fire spread and extreme fire behavior if ignitions occur,” the National Weather Service Warning saying.

Late Monday into Tuesday, winds are expected to die down across the South before forecasters forecast a second wind event, which is expected to hit Northern California first.

Across the Bay Area and Central Coast, a red flag warning will be in effect Tuesday through Thursday, with gusts averaging 25 to 50 mph. National Weather Service forecasters said this is expected to be a “long-duration offshore flow event” that will cause the area’s brush and plants to “rapidly cure,” making them conducive to fire despite from the recent rains.

By Wednesday and Thursday, those winds are expected to expand to much of Southern California, with a fire weather watch issued for the mountains of San Bernardino County, the Inland Empire and inland Orange County starting Tuesday. at night until Thursday. Much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties are under a similar warning on Wednesday and Thursday.

“If a fire occurs, conditions are favorable for rapid fire spread and extreme fire behavior that would threaten life and property,” the National Weather Service said, warning that winds on Wednesday and Thursday could be more dangerous. than earlier in the week, predicting “even stronger Santa Ana winds and drier fuels.”

The interior mountains and foothills of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties will be under a red flag warning from Tuesday night through Wednesday.

San Diego Gas & Electric has not reported any areas in its territory that may experience preventive power outages.

After it was discovered that downed power lines had started some of the deadliest and the most destructive fires, The state’s three largest utilities have adopted a preventative strategy to try to avoid fires during high winds. Utilities are proactively de-energizing sections of their networks, a process known as public safety power shutoffs, in areas that officials have determined are at higher risk for fire starts.