A Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) is a proactive safety measure used during extreme weather and fire conditions. As you may have noticed recently in the news, many electric utilities throughout the western U.S. have started implementing these protocols as part of wider wildfire mitigation strategies.
We understand that outages are disruptive. At Holy Cross Energy, we will only implement a PSPS as a very last resort, after all other safety measures have been considered to reduce wildfire risk.
Los eventos de PSPS son solo una parte de nuestro marco más amplio de preparación ante incendios forestales, que prioriza la seguridad pública.
Our year-round commitment to comprehensive wildfire mitigation (including vegetation management, proactive inspections, and ongoing system upgrades and maintenance) helps ensure we do everything possible to reduce the need for PSPS implementation
Most days of the year:
Very common during fire season:
Extremely rare!
To minimize impacts to members, our service territory is divided into nine zones for Fire Safety Settings and PSPS events. Depending on localized conditions, a PSPS may affect one zone, multiple zones, or the entire service area.
For example, a high-wind event combined with extremely dry conditions in the Parachute area may warrant a PSPS in that zone. However, if conditions are less severe in higher-elevation areas like Aspen, those areas may not be included.
If conditions call for a PSPS, we will provide timely updates to help you prepare and stay informed. Notification methods may include:
PSPS Monitoring
When a PSPS Event is Forecasted –
Restoring power safely is our top priority. Before any lines are re-energized, our crews conduct thorough inspections to ensure:
A PSPS may last from several hours to more than a day in rare cases. Power is restored as soon as it is safe to do so, and in order of critical importance.
Restoration Priorities:
Holy Cross Energy is commited to:
Take steps now to stay safe and ready if a PSPS occurs:
Not all outages during fire season are related to Fire Safety Settings. or a Public Safety Power Shutoff. Power interruptions can also result from:
Si se corta la luz, revise siempre primero el interruptor principal. Después de eso, nuestro mapa de interrupciones en línea Muestra la información más actualizada disponible sobre la mayoría, pero no sobre todas, las interrupciones confirmadas.
A Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) is a safety measure Holy Cross Energy (HCE) may implement during periods of extreme wildfire danger. It involves a temporary, targeted outage intended to reduce the likelihood that electrical equipment could ignite a wildfire when conditions (such as high winds, low humidity, and dry vegetation) create exceptionally high risk.
HCE may consider a PSPS when multiple wildfire-risk indicators align at extreme levels (typically strong winds or gusts, very low humidity, unusually dry fuels, and elevated fire danger indices).
A PSPS is considered a last-resort action after other mitigation measures and operational settings are applied.
HCE uses a percentile-based risk evaluation, comparing real-time conditions to long-term historical fire-weather data. This objective approach helps ensure PSPS decisions are data-driven and reserved for truly extreme danger.
HCE uses a tiered notification process based on forecasted wildfire conditions. As confidence increases in the need to call a PSPS event, notifications become more frequent and more specific to the affected locations.
No. PSPS events are targeted responses to areas where risk is highest. Due to terrain and wind pattern variations in our valleys, conditions vary significantly. Therefore, your home or business may not be affected even if nearby communities are.
HCE has categorized our Service Territory into 9 distinct zones, based on fire danger characteristics and optimized switching/outage scenarios and response times.
PSPS duration varies based on:
A PSPS may last from several hours to more than a day in rare cases. Power is restored as soon as it is safe to do so, and in order of critical importance.
Approaching a decade of focused effort, HCE continues to proactively strengthen and harden our wildfire‑resilient electric grid. This work includes replacing outdated reclosers with electronic smart devices; updating engineering construction standards; removing expulsion fuses; conducting annual drone and infrared inspections; and completing dedicated vegetation‑management and overhead system hardening techniques.
At HCE, we are confident in the reliability and resilience of our electric infrastructure. A PSPS will only be considered when natural environmental conditions create an elevated risk of a catastrophic wildfire for the safety of our members.
Power & lighting
Food & water
Heat, health, and safety
Communication
If you or someone in your home relies on electricity for medical equipment:
Restoration after a PSPS typically requires:
In some cases, outages may be related to transmission-level operations outside HCE’s direct control. If a transmission provider initiates a protective shutoff or experiences an outage, it can affect service to some HCE members.
HCE will work closely with our transmission provider to relay potential Transmission Related PSPS events as information becomes available and capturing HCE PSPS Notification Process.
Nuestros equipos trabajan siempre para restablecer el suministro eléctrico de la forma más rápida y segura posible.
La seguridad siempre será nuestra prioridad. Entendemos que las interrupciones del servicio pueden ser un inconveniente y agradecemos sinceramente su paciencia y comprensión durante las situaciones de alto riesgo de incendio. Estas medidas se toman para proteger lo que más importa: nuestros miembros, nuestras comunidades y los lugares que todos llamamos hogar.
