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Public Safety Power Shutoff – FAQ

1. Q: WhatisaPublicSafetyPowerShutoffevent?A. APublicSafetyPowerShutoff(PSPS)isapracticethatSouthernCaliforniaEdison(SCE)

mayusetopreemptivelyshutoffpowerinhighfireriskareastoreducefireriskduringextremeandpotentiallydangerousweatherconditions.Thecompany’sprioritywiththeimplementationofPSPSisthesafetyofthepublic,itscustomersanditsemployees.SCEpridesitselfonservicereliability,andturningoffthepowertoitscustomersisnotsomethingthecompanytakeslightly.PSPSeventsaretheoptionoflastresortinalineofoperationalproceduresSCEemploystomitigatefireriskwhenconditionswarrant.

2. Q: WhatisthemethodologyusedbySCEtodetermineHighFireRiskAreas?A. SCEconsiderscustomerslocatedinHighFireRiskAreasasthosewithintheCalifornia

PublicUtilitiesCommission’s(CPUC)Tier2(elevatedrisk)andTier3(extremerisk)Fire-ThreatAreas.TheCPUCFire-ThreatMapwasdevelopedwithinputfromtheU.S.ForestService,CaliforniaDepartmentofForestryandFireProtection(CALFIRE)andthestate’sInvestor-OwnedUtilities(IOU),includingSCE.TolearnmoreabouttheCPUCFire-Threatmap,pleasevisittheCPUC’sFire-ThreatMapwebpage.

3. Q: WhatarethebenefitsofaPSPSinregardstocommunitysafety?A. Debrisandtreelimbs/palmfrondscanbeblownintopowerlinesduringwindevents,

whichcouldcauseaserviceinterruption(e.g.anelectricwiretofall).Dependingonthesituation,theseinterruptionsmayhavethepotentialtogeneratesparksthatcouldigniteafire.Thisisespeciallyconcerningwhenstrongwindscoupledwithabundantfuel,dryconditions,anddifficulttoaccessterraincanincreasethedifficultyinfightingfires.

WhileSCEhasoperationalpracticesthatseektolimittheeffectsofdebriswhenitcontactsoverheadelectricalequipment,wecannotstopeveryinstance.

Preemptivelyshuttingoffpowerisalastresortinourpreventionandmitigationstrategy.Althoughdisruptiveforourcustomers,preemptivelyshuttingoffpowertoourlinesmaybenecessarytoensurethesafetyofourcommunitiesandemployeeswhenextremeweatherconditionspresentaclearandimminentdanger.

4. Q WhatarethefactorsandcriteriaforPSPS?A. Inconsideringwhethertoshutoffpowertolinesinaffectedareas,SCEconsidersawide

varietyoffactorswhichmayinclude,butarenotlimitedto,thefollowing:

• TheNationalWeatherServicehasissuedRedFlagWarnings*forcountiesthatcontainSCEcircuitsinHighFireRiskAreas

• OngoingassessmentsfromtheSCEin-housemeteorologistsregardingthelocalconditionsrelatedtowindspeed,humidity,andtemperatureinformedbystrategicallydeployedweatherstations

Public Safety Power Shutoff Frequently Asked Questions

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Public Safety Power Shutoff – FAQPublic Safety Power Shutoff – FAQ

• Real-timesituationalawarenessinformationfromhighlytrainedpersonnelpositionedlocallyinHighFireRiskAreasidentifiedasatriskforextremeweatherconditions

• InputfromourFireManagementexpertsco-locatedwiththeOfficeofEmergencyManagementregardinganyongoingfirefightingefforts

• Specificconcernsfromlocalandstatefireauthoritiesregardingthepotentialconsequencesofwildfiresinselectlocations

• Awarenessofmandatoryorvoluntaryevacuationordersinplace

• Expectedimpactofde-energizingcircuitsonessentialservicessuchaspublicsafetyagencies,waterpumps,trafficcontrols,etc.

• Otheroperationalconsiderationstominimizepotentialwildfireignitions

5. Q:HowwillSCEcommunicatetocustomersbeforeandafteraPSPSevent?A. SCEplanstobeginnotifyingcustomersapproximately48hoursinadvanceofapotential

PSPSevent,andwillattempttonotifycustomersagainapproximately24hoursbeforepowerisshutoff.Additionalnotificationswillbemadethroughouttheoutage,whenpowerhasbeenshutoffandwhenithasbeenrestored.TheremaybesituationswhichpreventSCEfromprovidingadvancenotice.Theactualonsetofextremeweatherconditionsandothercircumstancesbeyondourcontrolmayimpactcoordinationandnotificationefforts.

Notificationsmayoccurviaacombinationofphonecall,text,sce.com,email,andsocialmediaetc.

6. Q: HowwillSCEcoordinatewithlocalgovernments,emergencyoperationsofthelocal governmentsandfirstrespondersbeforeandduringaPSPSevent?

A. • InadvanceofPSPSevents,SCEwillmeetwithlocalgovernmentstoinformthemabout thePSPSprotocol,includingthelocationofcircuitsintheirjurisdictionswhichmaybe shutoffduringaPSPSevent

• SCEwillactivateanIncidentManagementTeam(IMT)whenaPSPSeventisapossibility.

– TheIMTwillmanageboththeoperationalandcommunicationtasksassociatedwithanevent,whichincludesinterfacingwithlocalgovernments’emergencyoperations,firstresponderssuchaspoliceandfireagencies,withothergovernmentagencies,andessentialcustomerssuchashospitals

• Whenfeasible,notificationstolocalgovernmentsandotheragencieswill:

– bemadeapproximatelytwohoursbeforecustomersarenotifiedsotheyhavevisibilitytoimpactedcircuits

– includekeySCEcontactinformationfortheagencytousearound-the-clockduringthePSPSevent

– includewhencircuitsareshutoffandwhentheyarerestored

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Public Safety Power Shutoff – FAQ

– advisethatSCEpersonnelwillbeavailable24hoursadayduringthePSPSeventtointerfacewithlocalgovernments.

• Notificationstoessentialcustomerswillbemadeinadvance,whenfeasible,aswell

7. Q: WhatisSCEdoingtoensureaccuratecustomercontactinformation?A. SCEleveragesvariouscommunicationschannels,includingmediaadvertisingto

encouragecustomerstoupdatetheircontactinformationonsce.com/ONIorviaMyAccount.

• SCEisconductingadirectoutreachtoessential,critical,andmajorcustomersinhighfireriskareasinordertovalidatecontactinformation

• Wewillhaverepresentativesavailableatcommunitymeetingstoupdateaccountsreal-timeinadditiontotheregularpracticeofverifyingandupdatingcustomerinformationduringinteractionswiththecontactcenterduringregularinquiriesandservicerequests

• Leveragingcustomer-facingcommunicationssuchas“DearNeighbor”lettersand SCE.com.

i. “DearNeighbor”lettersaremailedtocustomersaboutinfrastructureprojectsintheirarea.WewillbeutilizingthisexistingprocesstocommunicatewithcustomersinPSPSareas

ii. SCE.comwilllaunchadedicatedwebpageforcustomerstovisitforinformationregardingPSPS

8. Q: HowlongcanaPSPSeventlast?A. APSPSeventwilllastaslongastheextremeandpotentiallydangerousweather

conditionsexist,alongwithadditionaltimetoinspect/repairourequipmentintheaffectedarea(s)toensuresafeandreliablepowerrestoration.

9. Q:Howisitdeterminedifitissafetorestorepower?A. First,theextremeweatherconditionsthattriggeredtheshutoffmustsubsidetosafe

levelsbeforerestorationisconsidered.Second,groundandaerialpatrolswillbeconductedtoensurethatpowercanbesafelyrestoredtoourcustomers.

10. Q: Isthereaclaimsprocessforlossofgoods(i.e.food)?A. SCEhasaprocesstoevaluateclaimsrelatedtoPSPS.Eachclaimwillbeevaluatedona

case-by-casebasisandwillbedonesothroughtheIMTactivatedduringtheincident.PleasegothroughthestandardSCEclaimsprocess->DirectLink.Tonavigateheregoto https://www.sce.comClickonmenuintheupperleft-handcorner,clickoncustomersupport,clickonclaims&supportforms,clickonOverview–Claims&SupportForms.

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Public Safety Power Shutoff – FAQ

11. Q: WillSCEprovidegeneratorstocustomersduringaPSPS?A. SCEdoesnotprovidegeneratorstocustomers,exceptinlimitedcaseswheretheneed

iscoordinatedinadvancebetweenSCEandlocalagenciesforcriticallifeandsafetyreasons,orforfirstresponders.Forcustomerswithpersonalmedicalequipmentandothercriticalpersonaldevices,SCEurgescustomerstoexploresafe,alternativepowersources,suchasUninterruptiblePowerSupplies(UPS),thatcanbeusedsafelyindoorstopowermedicalequipmentduringapotentialextendedpowershutoff.YoucanlearnmoreaboutUPSsystemsonEnergyStar’sUPSwebpage.

12. Q: WhatotherstepsisSCEdoingtoreducefirerisk?A. Weapplyrobustdesignandconstructionstandards,aggressivetreetrimmingand

othervegetationmanagementactivities,variousoperationalpractices(e.g.wewillnotautomaticallyre-energizepowerlinesinhighfireriskareasafteracircuitinterruption),andcollaborativepartnershipswithfireagenciestomaintainpublicsafety.Inaddition,SCEisevaluatingavarietyofadditionaltoolsandtechnologiestoadvancefiresafetythroughoutoursystem,includingtheuseofdrones,weatherstationsandcameras,tosupplementourcurrentcapabilitiesandimprovesituationalawareness.

13. Q:Willthisbethenewnormalduringhighfire/windevents?A. Yes.AlthoughPSPSeventsarethelastresortinalineofoperationalproceduresSCE

employstomitigatefirerisk,itmustbepartofourstrategyasclimatechangeincreasestheseverityanddurationofheatwavesandotherextremeweatherevents.

14. Q: HowoftenwillPSPSeventsoccur?A. APSPSeventisalastresortwhenwearefacedwithextremeweatherconditions,and

itisimpossibletoanticipatetheirfrequency.Actualfrequencyofeventswilldependonvariousweatherandenvironmentalfactors,andthedecisionwillbemadewiththemostaccurateassessmentofreal-timeinformationandsituationalawarenessdataavailableatthe time.

15. Q: DoesSCEhavethelegalauthoritytoshutoffmypowerwhendeemed necessary?

A. CaliforniaPublicUtilitiesCode§399.2and§451giveSCEtheauthoritytoshutoffpowerinemergencysituationswhennecessarytoprotectpublicsafety.

16. Q: Willcustomerswithsolarpanelsinstalledstillbeshutoff?A. Yes,whenutilitypowerisshutoff,yoursolarenergysystemisdesignedtoimmediately

shutdownforsafetyreasons(toavoid“backfeeding”thegrid;refertoRule21).Agrid-tiedsolarelectricsystemdoesnotprovidepowerduringoutagesunlessitincludesabatterystoragesystemandtransferswitch.Yourpowerwilltypicallybereinstatedmomentsaftergridpowerisrestored.However,youmayneedtomanuallyresetyoursolarsystem’sinverterbacktoserviceafteryourpowerisreinstated(mostsystemsautomaticallyresetafterpowerisrestored).

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Public Safety Power Shutoff – FAQ

17. Q: Whataresomepreparednesstipsforcommunitiesbefore,during,andafter aPSPSevent?

A. EnsuringyouarepreparedforwildfireswillenableyoutobemoreresilientandreadyforaPSPSevent.TheCaliforniaDepartmentofForestryandFireProtection,orCALFIRE,hasawebsitefocusedonwildfirepreparedness:http://www.readyforwildfire.org/Topreparespecificallyforapoweroutage,pleasevisitourwebpage(on.SCE.com/outages)whichcontainsgreatinformationfordealingwithvariousissuesbefore,during,andafteranextendedpoweroutage.

18. Q: DootherutilitieshavesimilarPSPSprotocols?A. Yes.SanDiegoGas&Electric,forexample,hasutilizedasimilarprotocolforanumberof

years.

* Red Flag Warning Definition: A red flag warning is a forecast warning issued by the United States National Weather Service to inform area firefighting and land management agencies that conditions are ideal for wildland fire combustion and

rapid spread.