Fire Safety Outage Frequently Asked Questions

If the forecast indicates that extreme fire weather is imminent, we will send customer alerts as early and often as possible. Please check that Chelan PUD has your updated contact information on file, and sign up for  Everbridge notifications through Chelan County Emergency Management. We will provide ongoing updates through email, social media, local news outlets, partner agencies, and on our outage page.

If you rely on electricity for life-sustaining medical equipment, that is important information for us to know. Please sign up for the Medical Electrical Needs Registry, or call 509-661-8002.

Chelan PUD recognizes that many residents use wells for their water source. Your best protection is preparation. You may want to consider back-up generation for your well pump. Many municipal, neighborhood and PUD water systems have back-up generation available for emergencies. Check with your local water source about their emergency plan during a power outage. Chelan PUD's goal is to notify customers two days before a fire safety outage, which will allow some time to prepare.

It is important for the PUD to be aware of customers who rely on life-sustaining equipment. If you or someone in your home is dependent on an oxygen machine, kidney dialysis machine, ventilator or other such equipment, please complete this form to be placed on our Medical Electric Needs Registry. You can also request a hard copy form by emailing CustomerRelations@chelanpud.org or calling 509-661-8002.

Because the PUD cannot guarantee uninterrupted utility services, we encourage you to have a power outage preparedness plan such as proactively installing an emergency standby power supply to operate your medical equipment, obtaining backup equipment or arranging emergency assistance with friends or family.

Preparing for a fire safety outage is similar to preparing for any storm or fire season. Depending on conditions, power outages could last hours or days. Here are a few recommendations to prepare:

• Make sure we have your updated contact information: chelanpud.org/updateyourinfo
• Sign up for Everbridge emergency notifications through Chelan County Emergency Management
• Visit our Outage Tips and Outage Safety pages to learn what to do before and during a power outage. 
• Do you rely on electricity to operate medical equipment? Sign up for the Electrical Medical Needs Registry: chelanpud.org/medform
• You may also consider joining a vulnerable persons registry through Chelan County Emergency Management or Lake Wenatchee Fire & Rescue.
• Learn more about preparing for an emergency here.
• Sign up for email updates about fire safety outages here.

We are coordinating with property management agencies in the Phase I area to distribute information about fire safety outages among their rental properties. If you would like a copy of this information for your own rental property, please contact customeroutreach@chelanpud.org.

Throughout the summer, the PUD will monitor the weather forecasts using data from the Forest Service, state Department of Natural Resources and other weather-monitoring services. We will track several factors, including predicted wind gusts, humidity, fuel moisture and potential fire behavior.
The conditions that trigger a fire safety outage are different and generally more severe than those that would issue a red flag warning. Based on historical weather data, we estimate that the occasion will be rare.

The goal of fire safety outage management is to reduce the risk of ignition from electrical equipment, protect life and property during extreme weather conditions, and invest in best practices to protect customers from the impacts of large-scale litigation.

Chelan PUD continues to build upon its Wildfire Mitigation Program to protect critical infrastructure from fire damage and reduce the likelihood of ignition from electrical equipment.

Chelan PUD’s Fire Mitigation Program includes:

• Increased tree-trimming and brush removal
• Fire-retardant treatments
• Steel poles or undergrounding where feasible
• Increased inspections during fire season
• Coordination with local agencies
• Replace aging infrastructure
• Increasing the sensitivity of fire protection systems
• As a last resort, fire safety outages in fire-prone areas during critical fire weather (windy and dry conditions)

The risk of catastrophic wildfire in Chelan County has increased over the past decade, due to factors outside of our control: Declining forest health, increased development and recreation in fire-prone areas, and more extreme fire weather. Our focus is on holistic prevention; fire safety outages are considered a measure of last resort when public safety is threatened.