By Kevin Hendricks
PNM crews responded to multiple weather-related power outages throughout its service areas Tuesday as strong winds wreaked havoc across the state.
By 3 p.m. Tuesday, PNM’s outage map showed dozens of power outages affecting over 6,500 customers, including over 1,000 near Edgewood, 500 in Cedar Crest and over 2,000 in Sandoval County.
The Central New Mexico Electrical Cooperative, which serves members in Torrance, Santa Fe and Bernalillo counties, reported over 60 outages in the East Mountains.
PNM warned Monday that it was considering a Public Safety Power Shutoff in the East Mountains Tuesday.
“We encourage our customers to prepare for potential weather-related power outages,” PNM announced. “PNM has set system controls to be more sensitive in the East Mountains, Las Vegas, Clayton, Ruidoso and Silver City areas to better protect public safety from wildfire risks.”
PNM monitored the weather in the East Mountains throughout the day but announced at just before 5 p.m. it has not decided to cut off the power by late afternoon.
“It is unlikely that PNM will implement a Public Safety Power Shutoff in the East Mountains at this time,” PNM posted on social media. “The peak winds in East Mountains have been lower than the weather forecast, reducing the risk of wildfires impacting public safety.”