‘Excessive heat warning’ issued, NorthWestern Energy monitoring for possible power shutoff Thursday

Power lines lead into the coal-fired Intermountain Power Plant on March 28, 2016 outside Delta, Utah. The IPP generates more then 13 million megawatt hours of coal-fired energy each year to Utah and Southern California. (Photo by George Frey | Getty Images)

NorthWestern is monitoring weather forecasts in Montana and said it may turn off power Thursday depending on conditions.

“If extreme weather conditions threaten our ability to safely operate the electrical grid, we will turn off power to help protect public safety,” NorthWestern Energy said in an update on its website. “This is called a Public Safety Power Shutoff, or PSPS.”

If a planned power outage is needed for public safety, it is most likely in wildfire-prone areas outside Butte, Helena, Great Falls or Bozeman, the utility said.

Wednesday, the National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning for parts of eastern Montana including Billings, where the high could hit 108 degrees. Dangerous heat is expected to persist in eastern parts of the state through Thursday evening.

NorthWestern Energy said it is watching for high winds and high temperatures combined with low humidity forecasted for Thursday afternoon, July 25.

“We have entered the 1.1 Monitoring Stage of our Public Safety Power Shutoff Plan. There are no planned power outages at this time,” the utility said. “This is the earliest stage of the plan.”

The company said if a customer’s power is going to be shut off, NorthWestern will contact them directly via email and/or phone at the email address or phone number on file.

NorthWestern counts 405,505 electric customers in Montana.