(Bloomberg) -- More than 24,400 southern California homes and businesses could spend Thanksgiving in the dark as Edison International’s local utility may shut off power to prevent fires during a wind storm.

Santa Ana winds gusting over 40 miles (64 kilometers) per hour are forecast to strike portions of Los Angeles and Ventura counties Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. Southern California Edison warned that some customers in those counties could lose power starting early Thursday morning.  

California utilities have taken to turning off power lines during high winds after years of deadly wildfires sparked by their equipment. Such “public safety power shutoffs,” however, have been rare this year as several summer and fall rain storms cut the risk of fires. 

 

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