PNM warns windy, dry spring might prompt it to shut off power to prevent wildfires
An air tanker drops fire retardant called slurry over and around areas in the Village of Ruidoso, N.M., on Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (Photo by Chancey Bush / Albuquerque Journal)
The state's biggest electric utility is warning people in wildfire-prone areas that high winds and dry conditions might prompt the utility to shut off power this spring.
PNM officials said in a news release Monday that the utility is reaching out to customers in high-risk areas to remind them about the possibility of a 'public safety power shutoff,' one that could leave them without power temporarily. PNM sometimes shuts off power during high-wind and other extreme weather events to ensure power lines don't spark a wildfire, officials said.
In particular, the following areas could be affected by such a shutoff, according to PNM:
Clayton
Cochiti Pueblo
East Mountains
Las Vegas
Mescalero Apache Nation
Ruidoso
Santa Fe
Silver City
Tesuque Pueblo
Officials stressed a shutoff would occur only in areas where wildfire risk is the highest, and they'll give as much advance warning as possible to those in the area. Customers can get more information about the shut offs and how to prepare by contacting wildfire.safety@pnm.com, according to the news release, which also directed customers to this website for more safety tips.
The length of a shutoff depends on the terrain and weather conditions, how many miles of lines must be patrolled and the extent of damage, according to PNM.
The dry, windy spring expected across the state comes as lawmakers consider what liability utilities like PNM, as well as smaller electrical cooperatives, should face if one of their power lines causes a wildfire. Lawmakers are considering limiting the amount of liability small co-ops could face and also reducing all utilities' liability if they can prove they took adequate steps to clear trees from their rights-of-way.
Fires making home insurance unaffordable, impossible, NM lawmakers say
PNM is currently fighting a lawsuit filed on behalf of hundreds of people caught up in the McBride Fire in 2022. The fire near Ruidoso destroyed hundreds of structures and killed an elderly couple.
Shortly after the fire, lawyers began suing PNM and its contractor, Trees, Inc., ultimately representing hundreds of plaintiffs. The lawsuit alleges that the McBride Fire's cause was a pine tree that blew over onto a power line maintained by the utility. They say PNM and its contractor were negligent in allowing the tree to be tall enough and close enough to the power line to cause a fire on a windy day.
PNM previously denied any wrongdoing in a statement to Source New Mexico: 'Public reports have noted a tree spanning approximately 50 feet tall that was outside of our right-of-way had contacted a powerline due to unanticipated wind gusts of over 90 miles per hour,' spokesperson Eric Chavez told Source New Mexico. 'PNM proactively employs vegetation management and wildfire mitigation practices that comply with applicable authorities.'
An Intermountain West Drought and climate briefing earlier this month showed New Mexico facing dry and hot weather in the coming months.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Yahoo
NM Gov declares state of emergency for ongoing drought, fire risk
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, pictured during a March news conference, announced Thursday she issued a state of emergency due to ongoing drought in New Mexico. She also called on counties to ban fireworks. (Eddie Moore / Albuquerque Journal) New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is urging counties across the state to ban fireworks and has ordered a task force to come up with short-term emergency measures to address the ongoing drought and mounting wildfire risk, her office announced on Wednesday. The governor issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency last Thursday, which unlocks funds to help address the drought. It also directed the New Mexico Drought Task Force to meet, which it did Wednesday, to come up with ways to coordinate response efforts across more than 10 state agencies, according to a news release. New Mexico is currently experiencing some of the worst drought conditions ever recorded amid long-term predictions that the state could lose 25% of its water supply over the next 50 years. Snowpack, particularly in the southwestern part of the state, is at record lows, and about 87% of the state is experiencing drought conditions. Meanwhile, local, state, federal and tribal governments across New Mexico have imposed various levels of wildfire restrictions, citing the ongoing wildfire risk. A New Mexico State Forestry website compilation of those restrictions lists 38 jurisdictions that ban fireworks, campfires or impose other measures. 'It's bad': How drought, lack of snowpack and federal cuts could spell wildfire disaster in NM 'Despite some spring precipitation, almost all of New Mexico remains in conditions that threaten water supplies and elevate fire danger,' Lujan Grisham said in a news release. 'The State Forester has enacted fire restrictions for high-risk areas, but we can't stop there. This executive order ensures that we act decisively to conserve water and lessen our exposure to wildfire risk.' In its Wednesday meeting, the Drought Task Force, led by New Mexico State Engineer Elizabeth Anderson, began coming up with a list of short-term measures to reduce fire risk and help those affected by the drought, which it needs to have in place by July 31, according to the governor's office. The task force also is tasked with compiling and sharing emergency and other funding sources to help families and governments respond to the drought. 'New Mexico's river basins have seen below average precipitation this year, and our reservoir levels are among the lowest on record,' Anderson said in a news release. 'These conditions clearly justify emergency action.' As July 4 approaches, the governor wrote that she urges 'New Mexico's counties, municipalities and local governments to consider implementing firework bans pursuant to the Fireworks Safety and Licensing Act…as well as any other appropriate fire prevention measures that they may legally enact.'
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Yahoo
NM Gov declares state of emergency for ongoing drought, fire risk
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, pictured during a March news conference, announced Thursday she issued a state of emergency due to ongoing drought in New Mexico. She also called on counties to ban fireworks. (Eddie Moore / Albuquerque Journal) New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is urging counties across the state to ban fireworks and has ordered a task force to come up with short-term emergency measures to address the ongoing drought and mounting wildfire risk, her office announced on Wednesday. The governor issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency last Thursday, which unlocks funds to help address the drought. It also directed the New Mexico Drought Task Force to meet, which it did Wednesday, to come up with ways to coordinate response efforts across more than 10 state agencies, according to a news release. New Mexico is currently experiencing some of the worst drought conditions ever recorded amid long-term predictions that the state could lose 25% of its water supply over the next 50 years. Snowpack, particularly in the southwestern part of the state, is at record lows, and about 87% of the state is experiencing drought conditions. Meanwhile, local, state, federal and tribal governments across New Mexico have imposed various levels of wildfire restrictions, citing the ongoing wildfire risk. A New Mexico State Forestry website compilation of those restrictions lists 38 jurisdictions that ban fireworks, campfires or impose other measures. 'It's bad': How drought, lack of snowpack and federal cuts could spell wildfire disaster in NM 'Despite some spring precipitation, almost all of New Mexico remains in conditions that threaten water supplies and elevate fire danger,' Lujan Grisham said in a news release. 'The State Forester has enacted fire restrictions for high-risk areas, but we can't stop there. This executive order ensures that we act decisively to conserve water and lessen our exposure to wildfire risk.' In its Wednesday meeting, the Drought Task Force, led by New Mexico State Engineer Elizabeth Anderson, began coming up with a list of short-term measures to reduce fire risk and help those affected by the drought, which it needs to have in place by July 31, according to the governor's office. The task force also is tasked with compiling and sharing emergency and other funding sources to help families and governments respond to the drought. 'New Mexico's river basins have seen below average precipitation this year, and our reservoir levels are among the lowest on record,' Anderson said in a news release. 'These conditions clearly justify emergency action.' As July 4 approaches, the governor wrote that she urges 'New Mexico's counties, municipalities and local governments to consider implementing firework bans pursuant to the Fireworks Safety and Licensing Act…as well as any other appropriate fire prevention measures that they may legally enact.'
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Yahoo
NM utilities explain plans to turn off power in high fire risk, a new reality facing New Mexicans
Photos of damage caused by the McBride Fire in 2022 included in a lawsuit filed against PNM and its vegetation management contractor. The Public Regulation Commission on Thursday held a day-long workshop, hearing from utilities who discussed their strategies and justifications for "public safety power shutoffs" amid increased risk of wildfire and litigation for utility-caused wildfires. (Photo from lawsuit documents) People across the state should increasingly prepare to lose power the next time high winds and dry conditions combine to raise wildfire risk in their communities. That was the message big and small electrical providers from all corners of New Mexico told the state's utility regulator during a day-long hearing Thursday in Santa Fe. The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission held its first of four workshops, stemming out of the historic 2022 wildfire season, focused primarily on 'public safety power shutoffs.' Citing increased fire risk and also the specter of bankruptcy from class-action lawsuits, investor-owned utilities and small cooperatives said shutting off power when conditions require it is a crucial way to protect utilities and, therefore, ratepayers from huge expenses related to wildfires. PNM, the state's biggest electrical provider, did its first-ever power shutoff April 17 in Las Vegas, citing high winds and ongoing drought. The power shutoff affected about 2,300 customers and occurred during a particularly windy day in the Northern New Mexico town of about 12,000 people. PRC commissioners sought to hear from utilities and state and local officials about the toll of recent wildfires, their criteria for future shutoffs and also how they're approaching communicating with local governments and the public. PNM cuts off power to Las Vegas due to high wind and wildfire risk 'These disasters not only cause massive losses for people and businesses, but for utilities as well,' PRC chair Gabriel Aguilera said in his opening remarks. 'We've increasingly seen utilities facing lawsuits with insurance companies covering only a fraction of the damages, or in some cases, none at all.' Speakers presented on behalf of small cooperatives in Mora, San Miguel and Taos Counties, as well as investor-owned utilities like PNM and SPS. PNM is currently facing a lawsuit from hundreds of victims of the McBride Fire in Ruidoso in 2022. A tree falling into one of PNM's utility lines caused that fire, though the parties disagree on whether it was a result of the utility's negligence. Singleton Schreiber, one of the nation's biggest law firms bringing wildfire lawsuits, alleges the utility and its contractor negligently allowed the tree to be tall enough and close enough to the power line to cause a fire on a windy day. PNM has denied any liability, citing public reports that said a 'tree spanning approximately 50 feet tall that was outside of our right-of-way had contacted a powerline due to unanticipated wind gusts of over 90 miles per hour,' spokesperson Eric Chavez has said. Before the McBride Fire lawsuit, the Jemez Mountain Electrical Cooperative ultimately had to pay $25 million for its role in the 2011 Las Conchas Fire. It sought rate hikes to cover the cost and also could only get between $2 million and $3 million in insurance coverage afterward. It's not just small cooperatives that face existential lawsuits for wildfires: Major utility PG&E filed for bankruptcy after being implicated in a series of fires in California in 2017 and 2018, ultimately being ordered to pay a $13.5 billion settlement. The Legislature this year considered, but ultimately didn't pass, a bill that would have limited liability to electrical cooperatives to $2 million, so long as the PRC approved a wildfire mitigation plan the utility provided in advance. Claims office pays men more than women for food lost in state's biggest wildfire Cutting off power to prevent a wildfire carries its own costs. In Las Vegas, some families with elderly or sick relatives who relied on electric medical equipment had to scramble to find alternate power sources. And during the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire, long power outages meant many people in rural areas lost stores of food in their garage freezers. Henri Hammond-Paul, Santa Fe's director of community health and safety, said at the meeting that utilities need to communicate with local officials and the public as much as possible, including warnings well in advance of a shutoff. He noted that the cost of closing Santa Fe schools, in particular, due to a pre-emptive power shutoff could mean 16,000 students going without lunch. 'I understand that there is a lot of liability on utilities. There is a different type of liability and risk for cities, because even if we're not the ones who are going to be sued, necessarily, for an incident, we are accountable and we are seen as responsible,' he said. The PRC workshop was only to spur dialogue on the multi-faceted issue of the power shutoffs, members said, though Aguilera suggested the commission was considering crafting a rule that could require standards, public notice timelines and, 'at a high level, minimum requirements' for utilities before they shut power off. Watch the six-hour special PRC meeting here. The next three workshops are scheduled for July 17, Sept. 15 and Oct. 23.
