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Public Safety Power Shutoff Preparation Checklist

With worsening and lengthening wildfire seasons, it’s important to always be prepared. If we need to shut down power to your home, would you be ready? We’ve compiled a list of things you should consider as you go through your preparedness checklist.

If you’ve been affected by a Public Safety Power Shutoff, we encourage you to review and evaluate your plan.

1. Are you signed up for alerts?

Staying notified about potentially being impacted by a public safety power shutoff is the first step in making sure you’re prepared.

  • Account holder: If your name is on the potentially impacted SDG&E account, you will be notified 24-48 hours in advance as long as you have provided us with your up-to-date contact information and you have signed up for notifications via MyEnergyCenter.com.
  • Non-Account holder: If you are not the account holder but live in (or have loved ones who live in) the region you can still sign up to receive notifications by ZIP code at sdge.com/notifications.

2. Have you put together an emergency preparedness kit?

  • Common emergency kit items include: water, non-perishable food, flashlights, handheld radio, fresh batteries, rechargeable battery pack for your phone, first aid supplies, and cash.

 3. Do you have a generator, and is it ready to be safely operated?                                                   

  • Whether you need information on the basics of finding the right generator or tips on operating it safely, we have what you need to know here.

4. Do you have a plan regarding your food and water needs?

  • For tips on how to best preserve perishable food and maintain food safety during a power outage, check out the tips posted here.
  • When there is an extended Public Safety Power Shutoff, we open Community Resource Centers to support our customers. You can pick up snacks and bottled water at your closest Community Resource Center, which will also have a water truck where you can bring and fill large water containers for livestock and other needs.

5. Do you have medical needs requiring power?

  • View this article for information about how to prepare if you have medical devices that rely on power.

6. How will you communicate without power?

  • Consider having one or more portable chargers charged ahead of an outage to power your cell phones.
  • Cell towers typically are backed up by generators or batteries, but they can run out of backup power or become overloaded during emergency situations due to high volumes of calls. Therefore, a landline can be a good alternative. However, check with your phone company to find out which type of line you have and if it will require a back-up battery. Landlines also offer an advantage for emergency communication in that if you dial 911, first responders will immediately know your location.

7. Do you know how to manually open your electric garage door?

  • If you keep your car in a garage with an electric door, make sure you learn how to open it manually in case you need to open it while the power is out.

8. Do you have fuel for your car?

  • Gas station pumps don’t work during a power outage. Make sure you fuel up ahead of a Public Safety Power Shutoff.

9. Are you aware of where to go for up-to-date information regarding your power outage?

  • You can view up-to-date outage information at any time at sdge.com/OutageMap.
  • You can always get current information from your local Community Resource Center or Community Information Center when they are open. Details at sdge.com/ready.

10. Do you have an evacuation plan if your home is in danger of being impacted by a fire or disaster? Don’t forget your pets in your evacuation plan.

  • Visit this article for tips on creating your emergency/evacuation plan.

Additional resources:

  • ready.gov – Disaster preparedness information from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security
  • readyforwildfire.org – CAL FIRE’s wildfire preparedness website
  • cpuc.ca.gov/wildfiresinfo – Information on the CPUC’s wildfire safety efforts 
  • caloes.ca.gov – California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services website
  • firesafecouncil.org – California Fire Safe Council website
  • readysandiego.org/alertsandiego/