for days<\/a> across the Front Range in 2024. That was the first time any utility has preemptively de-energized power lines due to wildfire conditions in Colorado. Wednesday could be the second. <\/p>\nAccording to Holder, the lessons learned from that instance can be summarized in one word: communication.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201c[Our customers] wanted notification as soon as we were tracking something. They wanted us to let our communities and our customers know,\u201d Holder said. \u201cAs soon as we started seeing this weather evolve over the course of the last 24 hours, we were committed to that feedback.\u201d<\/p>\n
Xcel released two statements Monday stating it is \u201clikely\u201d that the company will cut off power on Wednesday, but questions remain. It is still unclear which communities will be affected and how long they may be without power.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s hard to forecast,\u201d Holder said. \u201cWe’re looking at several hours of this wind event occurring. We would not start restoration processes until this wind event ceases. <\/p>\n
Holder says the length of any power outage will depend not only on how long the Front Range remains under a red flag or critical fire warning, but also on whether wind damage occurs to power lines. If lines are damaged, restoration could take significantly longer.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur crews will start responding as soon as it is safe to do so,\u201d he said. \u201cThat could potentially be a couple hours, or it could be a day or two.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to the National Weather Service, communities stretching along the I-25 corridor from the Wyoming border down to Colorado Springs are expected to face critical fire weather warnings on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll the snow has melted across the plains and everything, so things are susceptible to burn,\u201d said Danielson.<\/p>\n
But forecasters say a cold front is expected to move through Thursday, bringing a chance of snow to higher elevations and helping to ease fire risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Front Range mountains, particularly the Western Slope, could see a few inches \u2014 generally two to five inches for most locations,\u201d Danielson said. \u201cThen another small wave is expected in the mountains on Saturday. It\u2019s not a major storm, but any snow at this point helps.\u201d<\/p>\n
The arrival of the front will bring cooler temperatures and higher humidity, temporarily lowering fire danger across the region. Still, officials stress that residents should remain alert through Wednesday as wind gusts and dry conditions continue to pose significant wildfire risks.<\/p>\n
How to prepare for a power outage<\/p>\n
To prepare for a power outage, make sure to gather portable chargers and ensure they \u2014 along with any of your electronic devices \u2014 are fully powered up ahead of time. Charge any medical devices you might need in advance, and make sure you\u2019ve got backup light sources and first aid kits ready to go. <\/p>\n
Xcel also recommends setting your fridge and freezer to the coldest setting in advance. That will help keep food cold for up to 4 hours in the fridge and two days in the freezer if the power cuts out. And if the power does go out, make sure to turn off or unplug appliances that could surge when power returns. <\/p>\n
Make sure to have a battery-powered radio in order to receive alerts and safety information. Internet and data are often jammed or inaccessible during power outages and emergencies. <\/p>\n
And here\u2019s one you might not think of: Practice opening your garage without the electronic motor so you can leave your house if needed.<\/p>\n
Editor’s Note: This story was updated with the latest information from Xcel. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Updated 5:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. After weeks of unseasonably dry weather and record-breaking warmth, the…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":452919,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[50,67,132,68,5609,11039,29039],"class_list":{"0":"post-452918","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"category-us","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us","13":"tag-wildfires","14":"tag-wind","15":"tag-xcel-energy"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/452918","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=452918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/452918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/452919"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=452918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=452918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=452918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}