Blackout Threats Cause More Angst Than Grief

As Ventura County flirted with power blackouts Wednesday, police departments braced for increased emergency calls, cities checked their backup generators and a booming intercom voice at the county government center issued a last-minute warning to avoid riding the elevators.

Rolling blackouts were first ordered for Ventura County cities between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. but were delayed throughout the day until after 10 p.m. Southern California Edison officials said the threatened blackouts were not definite, although parts of San Francisco and other Northern California cities lost power for more than two hours.

For Ventura County and elsewhere in the Southland, it was the second day of a Stage 3 emergency that Edison officials said could last through the weekend.

“It’s all subject to change, literally minute by minute,” said Rudy Gonzales, a spokesman for Edison in Ventura County. “We try not to hit entire communities.”

The power drain forced the Ventura County Government Center to run at limited power Wednesday and even caused Costco in Thousand Oaks to cut power for a time while customers continued shopping. Both places have contracts with Edison that save on their electric bills in exchange for voluntary power reductions during times of shortage.

Edison spokeswoman Nancy Williams said if a rolling blackout hit parts of Ventura County, the outage would last no more than about an hour at a time. Those losing power would not face another outage until Edison’s complex power delivery system rolled through all 76 customer groupings, she said, which could mean one outage or many, depending on when Edison acquires more power.

Police and fire departments, as well as hospitals with more than 100 beds, would be exempt from the blackout, Williams said.

“There just isn’t enough power,” she said. “To keep the majority running, someone is going to have to absorb some pain.”

Ron Calkins, Ventura’s director of public works, said Wednesday he was frustrated that Edison couldn’t tell officials specific times for blackouts. A sudden power outage, he said, could knock out city sewer pumps and spill sewage into the streets.

“We would dearly love to have more specific information,” Calkins said.

Venture police prepared for power losses in three of the city’s power sectors. Lt. Carl Handy said officers were on alert for any blackout-related problems in the three areas of the city designated for outages Wednesday.

Parts of Camarillo, Thousand Oaks, Oxnard and Moorpark also faced the possibility of blackouts Wednesday, officials said, while Port Hueneme and Ojai were spared. However, that could change at any time, Williams said.

Oxnard officials prepared for outages as they did in 1999 for the Y2K scare.

“Everything is working and up and running,” said Ken Ortega, the city’s water superintendent. “We are certainly paying attention.”

At the county government center, court cases churned on in dimly lighted courtrooms, and office workers relied on light reflecting through plate-glass windows.

Testimony in the murder case of skinhead gang member Justin Merriman continued amid semidarkness, after Superior Court Judge Vincent O’Neill and attorneys agreed to continue.

Johnny Johnston, the county’s director of general services, described the government center’s situation as “sort of a voluntary preliminary blackout.”

Johnston said the county agreed Wednesday to voluntarily dim the lights and cut power to most of the building by 3 p.m.

“No one has ever lived through this before, so it’s a new adventure for the whole state,” Johnston said.

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Times staff writer Tracy Wilson and correspondent Jenifer Ragland contributed to this report.