Avista launches safety mode as conditions move toward fire season

Avista Utilities announced Tuesday that with the onset of summerlike conditions and increasing wildfire danger in the region, it has moved to “Fire Safety Mode,” which will lead to temporary changes to its power line operations.

The utility has done this for two decades, but it has renewed importance following the devastating Gray and Oregon Road fires, which destroyed a combined 366 homes and 710 structures on Aug. 18, 2023. Together, those blazes were the most destructive in state history.

“Wildfire preparedness is not just a seasonal effort – it’s a year-round responsibility,” Avista CEO Heather Rosentrater said in a news release. “We’ve invested in infrastructure, technology, and operational practices that help us respond to changing conditions and protect the communities we serve.”

Since launching its Wildfire Resiliency Plan in 2020, Avista has replaced wooden transmission poles with steel, and crews have installed fire-retardant mesh at pole bases and upgraded wooden crossarms to fiberglass.

In other areas, crews will be converting overhead power lines to underground wires to further reduce the risk to damage from fire and to limit outages caused by tree limbs falling into the lines, according to the release.

Following the Gray and Oregon Road fires, Avista for the first time announced that it could implement a Public Safety Power Shutoff, which is a targeted-manual power outage if an area of the infrastructure is under severe risk of fire. For that possibility, the utility continually needs updated information from some customers. It asks customers to make sure Avista has correct contact information to reach them during emergencies.

It also wants to know whether anyone in the home has medical devices that rely on electricity. That information will be added to a list of customers who would receive extra notifications in case of an extended outage.

All other customers are urged to keep emergency supplies together in one place, such as flashlights, portable charges and a few days’ food for residents and their pets.