El Paso Electric: Conditions Improve Near Power Lines Threatened By Fire
El Paso Electric customers had been warned the utility might need to implement rolling blackouts if the growing Wallow Fire in Arizona damaged some critical power lines in its path.
That possibility has now diminished as the fire has moved east to New Mexico, instead of northeast toward the Springerville-Luna power line.
The flames were still dangerously close to a pair of major power lines that bring electricity to West Texas and Southern New Mexico Monday, but firefighters said they’ve been able to burn off most of the fuel in between.
EPE’s 345 kV transmission line carries 30 percent of the power the utility receives from the nuclear plant in Palo Verde, Ariz. Had the fire damaged the line, El Paso Electric officials said last week that they would be forced to implement rolling blackouts to protect the integrity of the entire system.
Another line that carries 10 percent of EPE’s electricity was just 8 miles from the fire, but utility officials said they might have been able to supplement that loss by purchasing power from nearby utilities.
Over the weekend, crews stopped the fire’s northern advance and are now trying to corral its eastern advance into New Mexico by burning a line in front of the fire that it can’t cross.
