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Malaysian Reserve
06-06-2025
- Business
- Malaysian Reserve
Wildfire Prevention Today and Tomorrow: PG&E Shares 2025 Wildfire Season Readiness Update, Showcases Local XPRIZE Wildfire Competitors
PG&E's Layers of Protection Are Working, Prevented a Major Wildfire in 2023 and 2024 SAN RAMON, Calif., June 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to monitor wildfire conditions and deploying proven layers of wildfire protection to prevent wildfires, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) shared its readiness ahead of peak wildfire season. These layers of protection helped prevent a major wildfire in 2023 and 2024. Today, at PG&E's Applied Technology Services lab, the company's research and development facility, PG&E shared details about how the layers of protection are applied throughout PG&E's service area to prevent wildfires. PG&E was joined by representatives of XPRIZE Wildfire and two local teams – Ember Guard and Rain – who bring AI power and autonomous firefighting to the competition. PG&E is a proud sponsor of XPRIZE Wildfire and its work to build a pipeline of new technologies that support advanced wildfire mitigation, detection and response. Today's Wildfire Resilience from Layers of Protection Undergrounding Powerlines in high fire-risk areas to permanently eliminate ignition risk. PG&E has undergrounded approximately 915 miles of powerlines since 2021 and plans to have nearly 1,600 total miles of powerlines underground by the end of 2026. Overhead System Upgrades include the installation of strengthened power poles and covered powerlines. This work reduces wildfire ignition risk by nearly 67% once completed. PG&E has completed more than 1,430 miles of overhead system upgrades since 2018 and plans to complete nearly 1,900 total miles of system upgrades by the end of 2026. Situational Awareness Improvements including the deployment of a state-wide network of nearly 1,600 weather stations, of which 1,400 are artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning enabled, and more than 650 high-definition wildfire cameras. The AI enabled cameras process data and provide automated wildfire notifications. Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings (EPSS) automatically turn off power within one-tenth of a second, or faster, if a wildfire hazard is detected. These settings protect 1.8 million PG&E customers in areas with elevated or extreme wildfire risk. In 2024, these settings contributed to more than a 65% reduction in reportable ignitions, compared to the 2018-2020 average. More than half of customers protected by EPSS did not experience a power outage while EPSS was enabled in 2024, and the average duration of outages on an EPSS-enabled circuit decreased 17% from the prior two-year average. Vegetation Management programs continue to evolve using a data-driven, risk-informed approach to help reduce both outages and potential ignitions caused by vegetation contacting PG&E's equipment. Over the past five years, PG&E has inspected, trimmed or removed over 960,000 trees and other types of vegetation in our service area. Drone inspections that more efficiently provide a bird's eye view of assets from the ground and air. Public Safety Power Shutoffs are a last resort during extreme weather conditions to reduce the risk of catastrophic fire. PG&E's experienced meteorologists use cutting-edge weather models to forecast wildfire risk at a granular level to determine the transmission and distribution circuits that will get de-energized. 'Rather than being reactive to conditions, our wildfire work proactively protects and prevents wildfire. We're keeping our system safe while we build resilience for the future. This work is essential in light of extreme weather and extended wildfire seasons,' said PG&E Wildfire Mitigation Vice President Andy Abranches. Tomorrow's XPRIZE Goal: Detect Earlier, Extinguish Faster As wildfire conditions are dynamic from year to year, PG&E is committed to supporting a pipeline of new research, development and innovation to address climate-driven wildfire challenges. PG&E today joined XPRIZE Wildfire and two local teams participating in the four-year, $11 million competition to accelerate the speed of detection and suppression of destructive wildfires. XPRIZE Wildfire encourages teams from around the world to innovate around a wide range of firefighting technologies across two complementary tracks designed to transform how potentially catastrophic fires are detected, managed and suppressed. PG&E is the co-title sponsor of XPRIZE Wildfire along with the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. 'For 30 years, XPRIZE has spurred innovation to address the world's most pressing challenges. In 2023, we launched XPRIZE Wildfire with a goal to end destructive wildfires,' said XPRIZE Wildfire Program Director Andrea Santy. 'Today, we have an incredible global cohort of dozens of teams making monumental strides towards developing solutions to reach this audacious goal.' One of the Bay Area teams showcased at the event was Palo Alto-based Ember Guard, a cross-disciplinary team led by Ahvish Roy, founder of ARX, and supported by Sangram Ganguly, Chief Technology Officer of Rhombus Power. It uses deep learning along with AI to produce a scalable cloud-based high-resolution wildfire model that forecasts the likely propagation and intensity of a wildfire so that firefighters can prioritize their limited resources Also participating was Alameda-based Rain, which recently showcased autonomous wildfire suppression technology in California. A Black Hawk helicopter equipped with wildfire mission autonomy from Rain and MATRIX™ autonomy technology from Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, conducted a demonstration of a wide range of wildfire response missions and tasks, including finding and suppressing early-state wildfires, all commanded via tablet. Rain is a participant in the Electric Program Investment Charge program, a research and development project. Learn more about PG&E's wildfire safety efforts at About PG&EPacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit and
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wildfire Prevention Today and Tomorrow: PG&E Shares 2025 Wildfire Season Readiness Update, Showcases Local XPRIZE Wildfire Competitors
PG&E's Layers of Protection Are Working, Prevented a Major Wildfire in 2023 and 2024 SAN RAMON, Calif., June 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to monitor wildfire conditions and deploying proven layers of wildfire protection to prevent wildfires, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) shared its readiness ahead of peak wildfire season. These layers of protection helped prevent a major wildfire in 2023 and 2024. Today, at PG&E's Applied Technology Services lab, the company's research and development facility, PG&E shared details about how the layers of protection are applied throughout PG&E's service area to prevent wildfires. PG&E was joined by representatives of XPRIZE Wildfire and two local teams – Ember Guard and Rain – who bring AI power and autonomous firefighting to the competition. PG&E is a proud sponsor of XPRIZE Wildfire and its work to build a pipeline of new technologies that support advanced wildfire mitigation, detection and response. Today's Wildfire Resilience from Layers of Protection Undergrounding Powerlines in high fire-risk areas to permanently eliminate ignition risk. PG&E has undergrounded approximately 915 miles of powerlines since 2021 and plans to have nearly 1,600 total miles of powerlines underground by the end of 2026. Overhead System Upgrades include the installation of strengthened power poles and covered powerlines. This work reduces wildfire ignition risk by nearly 67% once completed. PG&E has completed more than 1,430 miles of overhead system upgrades since 2018 and plans to complete nearly 1,900 total miles of system upgrades by the end of 2026. Situational Awareness Improvements including the deployment of a state-wide network of nearly 1,600 weather stations, of which 1,400 are artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning enabled, and more than 650 high-definition wildfire cameras. The AI enabled cameras process data and provide automated wildfire notifications. Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings (EPSS) automatically turn off power within one-tenth of a second, or faster, if a wildfire hazard is detected. These settings protect 1.8 million PG&E customers in areas with elevated or extreme wildfire risk. In 2024, these settings contributed to more than a 65% reduction in reportable ignitions, compared to the 2018-2020 average. More than half of customers protected by EPSS did not experience a power outage while EPSS was enabled in 2024, and the average duration of outages on an EPSS-enabled circuit decreased 17% from the prior two-year average. Vegetation Management programs continue to evolve using a data-driven, risk-informed approach to help reduce both outages and potential ignitions caused by vegetation contacting PG&E's equipment. Over the past five years, PG&E has inspected, trimmed or removed over 960,000 trees and other types of vegetation in our service area. Drone inspections that more efficiently provide a bird's eye view of assets from the ground and air. Public Safety Power Shutoffs are a last resort during extreme weather conditions to reduce the risk of catastrophic fire. PG&E's experienced meteorologists use cutting-edge weather models to forecast wildfire risk at a granular level to determine the transmission and distribution circuits that will get de-energized. "Rather than being reactive to conditions, our wildfire work proactively protects and prevents wildfire. We're keeping our system safe while we build resilience for the future. This work is essential in light of extreme weather and extended wildfire seasons," said PG&E Wildfire Mitigation Vice President Andy Abranches. Tomorrow's XPRIZE Goal: Detect Earlier, Extinguish Faster As wildfire conditions are dynamic from year to year, PG&E is committed to supporting a pipeline of new research, development and innovation to address climate-driven wildfire challenges. PG&E today joined XPRIZE Wildfire and two local teams participating in the four-year, $11 million competition to accelerate the speed of detection and suppression of destructive wildfires. XPRIZE Wildfire encourages teams from around the world to innovate around a wide range of firefighting technologies across two complementary tracks designed to transform how potentially catastrophic fires are detected, managed and suppressed. PG&E is the co-title sponsor of XPRIZE Wildfire along with the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. "For 30 years, XPRIZE has spurred innovation to address the world's most pressing challenges. In 2023, we launched XPRIZE Wildfire with a goal to end destructive wildfires," said XPRIZE Wildfire Program Director Andrea Santy. "Today, we have an incredible global cohort of dozens of teams making monumental strides towards developing solutions to reach this audacious goal." One of the Bay Area teams showcased at the event was Palo Alto-based Ember Guard, a cross-disciplinary team led by Ahvish Roy, founder of ARX, and supported by Sangram Ganguly, Chief Technology Officer of Rhombus Power. It uses deep learning along with AI to produce a scalable cloud-based high-resolution wildfire model that forecasts the likely propagation and intensity of a wildfire so that firefighters can prioritize their limited resources Also participating was Alameda-based Rain, which recently showcased autonomous wildfire suppression technology in California. A Black Hawk helicopter equipped with wildfire mission autonomy from Rain and MATRIX™ autonomy technology from Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, conducted a demonstration of a wide range of wildfire response missions and tasks, including finding and suppressing early-state wildfires, all commanded via tablet. Rain is a participant in the Electric Program Investment Charge program, a research and development project. Learn more about PG&E's wildfire safety efforts at About PG&EPacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit and View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Thousands without power in Lubbock, Amarillo areas during high wind dust storm
Powerful winds and blowing dust on Friday have triggered thousands of power outages and contributed to poor driving conditions across the Texas South Plains and Panhandle. Early Friday morning, a Blowing Dust Warning was placed for much of the region as winds sustained speeds between 40-50 mph. The National Weather Service in Lubbock expected gusts of up to 80 mph, and 90 mph were possible on the Caprock Escarpment. Conditions were similar in the Panhandle, where the National Weather Service in Amarillo reported a wind gust of 83 mph near its Amarillo office. "With the strong sustained winds and expected gusts upwards of 70 mph today, we can also expect medium to high chances for areas of dust to blow in from New Mexico as well," reads a statement from NWS Amarillo. "This dust could cause local to widespread reductions in visibility during the morning through afternoon hours." More: High winds, fire danger to hit Lubbock area Friday. Here's what to expect A red flag warning was in effect for the region, with officials warning of increased danger for wildfires to spread. The hazardous conditions also prompted some area schools to cancel classes Friday. School events: Lubbock-area winds, dust storm reschedule high school baseball, softball district games The high winds, paired with critical fire conditions, prompted Xcel Energy to warn customers that there could be Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings (EPSS) and a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) in the Panhandle area. LP&L also stated on Thursday that their crews, already dealing with the after effects of a series of electrical fires and explosions Wednesday night at Texas Tech, were on alert for expected power outages throughout the city of Lubbock. By 12:07 p.m., power maps from Xcel Energy reported 637 outage orders affecting 48,352 customers. Amarillo was the most affected with 27,354 customers and 271 outages. Xcel's map, is updated every 10 minutes. LP&L, which operates the majority of Lubbock, reported 54 outages affecting 1,632 customers. People can view the map at which is updated throughout the day. South Plains Electric Co-Op reported 632 customers impacted. High winds and blowing dust were making for dangerous highways and roadways across West Texas. The City of Lubbock issued a post telling people to avoid travel if possible. "The City is urging citizens to stay indoors and off of roadways if at all possible this afternoon," the city stated on social media. "The US National Weather Service Lubbock Texas has issued a Blowing Dust Warning until 8 PM this evening for on the Caprock. Widespread blowing dust could reduce visibilities to 1/4 mile or less. Isolated wind gusts up to 90 mph will be possible." All northbound and southbound main lanes of Interstate 27 at FM 54 near Abernathy were closed early Friday afternoon due to overturned vehicles. Traffic has been detoured onto frontage roads. The Texas Department of Public Safety in Amarillo reported that, due to low visibility and high winds, DPS Troopers are working multiple crashes across the Amarillo District, mostly occurring in Potter, Randall, and Oldham County at this time. "If possible, avoid travel," reads a statement from the DPS. "If you must get out in these dangerous conditions, Slow down, keep both hands on the steering wheel, do not stop on the roadway, and give yourself plenty of room between you and the vehicles in front of you, especially the high-profile vehicles as those are the ones more likely to blow over. Drive safe. Stay safe!" This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Xcel Energy, LP&L, South Plains Co-Op outage maps show thousands
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
To prevent wildfires, eastern NM could lose power Friday
Mar. 11—A windy few days last week caused Public Service Company of New Mexico customers to prepare for potential power shutoffs. This week, Xcel Energy users might need to do the same. Eastern New Mexico residents can expect high winds and low humidity levels later this week, prompting Xcel Energy to notify customers about a potential Public Safety Power Shutoff, or PSPS, on Friday. Xcel Energy provides service in Artesia, Carlsbad, Clovis, Dexter, Eunice, Hagerman, Hobbs, Jal, Lake Arthur, Loving, Portales, Roswell, Texico and Tucumcari. The utility said a PSPS is a last resort. Xcel plans to utilize Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings first, keeping power online unless an issue like a fallen tree branch is detected. Xcel officials in a news release Tuesday encouraged customers to prepare a home emergency kit in case the company needs to de-energize parts of the grid, with items like flashlights, batteries, first-aid kits and a battery-powered radios. The utility's online outage map at includes live outage updates and anticipated restoration timelines. Customers can also stay up to date on social media, like X and Facebook, and update their communication preferences from Xcel online at
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
To prevent wildfires, eastern NM could lose power Friday
Mar. 11—A windy few days last week caused Public Service Company of New Mexico customers to prepare for potential power shutoffs. This week, Xcel Energy users might need to do the same. Eastern New Mexico residents can expect high winds and low humidity levels later this week, prompting Xcel Energy to notify customers about a potential Public Safety Power Shutoff, or PSPS, on Friday. Xcel Energy provides service in Artesia, Carlsbad, Clovis, Dexter, Eunice, Hagerman, Hobbs, Jal, Lake Arthur, Loving, Portales, Roswell, Texico and Tucumcari. The utility said a PSPS is a last resort. Xcel plans to utilize Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings first, keeping power online unless an issue like a fallen tree branch is detected. Xcel officials in a news release Tuesday encouraged customers to prepare a home emergency kit in case the company needs to de-energize parts of the grid, with items like flashlights, batteries, first-aid kits and a battery-powered radios. The utility's online outage map at includes live outage updates and anticipated restoration timelines. Customers can also stay up to date on social media, like X and Facebook, and update their communication preferences from Xcel online at
