Blackouts possible again as fire danger looms in California

Less than two weeks after blacking out much of Northern California, the state's largest utility is warning that dangerous fire weather could prompt it to shut off power to about a half-million people.

Pacific Gas & Electric began notifying customers Monday that it could begin precautionary shutoffs to parts of 16 counties as early as Wednesday, mostly in the Sierra foothills and to the north of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Any blackouts would last at least 48 hours, the utility said.

A man watches as firefighters prepare to enter his backyard to fight a wildfire in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. The blaze broke out Monday morning in a coastal canyon of the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood. The flames quickly churned uphill through dry brush as helicopters made water drops to keep it from reaching large houses at the top of a bluff. Firefighters in backyards are using water hoses to protect structures. The cause is unknown. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

The utility is concerned that winds forecast to hit 60 mph at times could throw branches and debris into power lines or topple them, sparking wildfires. PG&E equipment has been blamed for igniting several of California's deadliest and most destructive fires in recent years and the utility, facing billions in potential claims, was forced into bankruptcy.

However, CEO Bill Johnson said the shutdown was about safety, not money.

"The sole intent is to prevent a catastrophic wildfire," he said.

A Los Angeles County Firefighter looks up at the Palisades Fire before gearing up to fight the flames in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. The blaze broke out Monday morning in a coastal canyon of the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood. The flames quickly churned uphill through dry brush as helicopters made water drops to keep it from reaching large houses at the top of a bluff. Firefighters in backyards are using water hoses to protect structures. The cause is unknown. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

A huge portion of California is under high fire risk amid unpredictable gusts and soaring temperatures. At least three homes were damaged or destroyed Monday evening by wind-whipped flames in a mountain community near San Bernardino in inland Southern California. Earlier in the day Los Angeles firefighters beat back a blaze as it raced up canyon walls toward multimillion-dollar ocean-view homes on a coastal ridge.

"This could be one of our most critical weeks of the fall season for fire weather due to very warm temperatures and bouts of Santa Ana winds," the National Weather Service said in a statement.

Southern California Edison, which had warned of possible safety outages at any time, announced Monday evening that none would take place in the next 48 hours but warned that it was monitoring the weather.

A fire hose stands at a glass panel ready to protect a home from a wildfire in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. The blaze broke out Monday morning in a coastal canyon of the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood. The flames quickly churned uphill through dry brush as helicopters made water drops to keep it from reaching large houses at the top of a bluff. Firefighters in backyards are using water hoses to protect structures. The cause is unknown. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

"Weather conditions might be different for Thursday," and in that case, notification would be given Tuesday, said Edison spokeswoman Sally Jeun.

PG&E's phone, text and email warnings to 200,000 homes and businesses came about 10 days after more than 2 million people had their lights turned off by the utility when powerful winds whipped up.

Johnson promised that if blackouts are necessary, the utility will work to do better at communicating with customers and avoid the chaos of the last shutoff when the utility only gave about 10 hours' warning to customers in northern and central California. Its website crashed, maps were inconsistent and call centers were overloaded.

A Palisades resident talks with a firefighter before evacuating her home as a wildfire erupts in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

Panicked residents stood in long lines at supermarkets, hardware stores and gas stations, rushing to buy ice, coolers, flashlights, batteries and gas for their cars.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and others blasted PG&E for the unprecedented size of the blackout and the communication problems.

Andy Vesey, a PG&E executive, said last week that the utility didn't think broadly enough and underestimated the needs of their customers and local governments.

A firefighter gets caught off-guard by a flare up of the Palisades Fire in the Highlands neighborhood in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

"We have to develop a mindset, or culture, of anticipation," he said.

Firefighters pull hoses and spray flames behind a home in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

Firefighters protect a home from a wildfire in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

Firefighters protect a home from a wildfire in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

A firefighter stands near a hydrant during work to protect homes from the flames of the Palisades Fire, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019 in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles. A furious firefighting air and ground attack beat back the wildfire as it raced up canyon walls toward multimillion-dollar ocean-view homes as some residents evacuated and others stayed behind to try and protect their homes. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

A plane makes a drop in a canyon behind a ridgeline as a wildfire threatens homes in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoReed Saxon)

A Los Angeles County Fire Department helicopter makes a water drop as flames from a wildfire threaten homes on a ridgeline in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoReed Saxon)

Firefighters begin hosing down the flames of a wildfire called the Palisades Fire minutes after it ignites on Monday, Oct. 21, 2019 in Pacific Palisades, a suburb of Los Angeles. A furious firefighting air and ground attack beat back the wildfire Monday as it raced up canyon walls toward multimillion-dollar ocean-view homes on a ridge in Los Angeles. (AP PhotoChristian Monterrosa)

A helicopter makes a water drop as flames threaten homes on a ridgeline in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoReed Saxon)

A helicopter makes a water drop as flames threaten homes on a ridgeline in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles, Monday, Oct. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoReed Saxon)

TOKYO (AP) — The American envoy to the United Nations called Friday for countries armed with atomic weapons to pursue nuclear disarmament as she visited the atomic bomb museum in Nagasaki, Japan.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who became the first U.S. cabinet member to visit Nagasaki, stressed the importance of dialogue and diplomacy amid a growing nuclear threat in the region.

“We must continue to work together to create an environment for nuclear disarmament. We must continue to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons in every corner of the world,” she said after a tour of the atomic bomb museum.

“For those of us who already have those weapons, we must pursue arms control. We can and must work to ensure that Nagasaki is the last place to ever experience the horror of nuclear weapons,” she added, standing in front of colorful hanging origami cranes, a symbol of peace.

The United States dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people. A second attack three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 more people. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.

Nagasaki Gov. Kengo Oishi said in a statement that he believed Thomas-Greenfield's visit and her first-person experience at the museum “will be a strong message in promoting momentum of nuclear disarmament for the international society at a time the world faces a severe environment surrounding atomic weapons.”

Oishi said he conveyed to the ambassador the increasingly important role of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in emphasizing the need of nuclear disarmament.

Thomas-Greenfield's visit to Japan comes on the heels of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's official visit to the United States last week and is aimed at deepening Washington's trilateral ties with Tokyo and Seoul. During her visit to South Korea earlier this week, she held talks with South Korean officials, met with defectors from North Korea and visited the demilitarized zone.

The ambassador said the United States is looking into setting up a new mechanism for monitoring North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Russia and China have thwarted U.S.-led efforts to step up U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its ballistic missile testing since 2022, underscoring a deepening divide between permanent Security Council members over Russia’s war on Ukraine.

She said it would be “optimal” to launch the new system next month, though it is uncertain if that is possible.

The U.N. Security Council established a committee to monitor sanctions, and the mandate for its panel of experts to investigate violations had been renewed for 14 years until last month, when Russia vetoed another renewal.

In its most recent report, the panel of experts said it is investigating 58 suspected North Korean cyberattacks between 2017 and 2023 valued at approximately $3 billion, with the money reportedly being used to help fund its weapons development.

The United States, Japan and South Korea have been deepening security ties amid growing tension in the region from North Korea and China.

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, right, speaks to Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, second right, as they wait for a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, right, walk to meet Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, talk prior to a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, prepare to talk during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)