PG&E may shut off power to nearly 1 million customers in California to prevent 'catastrophic wildfire'

Thousands of customers of California's largest utility company will find out Saturday morning if they will have to spend days without power as fires continue to rage in the state. Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) officials are expected to decide by 8 a.m. (local time), if the company will cut power to about 850,000 customers, a utility spokesman said. The planned power outage could last for several days, the utility said, to prevent a "catastrophic wildfire" during what is expected to be particularly dry and windy weather. PG&E has been under scrutiny in recent years for the role its equipment played in several devastating fires across the state, including last year's deadly Camp Fire. Over the last weeks, it has been enacting preventative shut offs all over northern and central California, but this weekend's could be the largest this year. Estimates indicate the potential outage could affect more than 2 million people, a spokesperson with the company said...MORE