NorthWestern Energy backs off power outage plan

NorthWestern Energy has, for now, pulled back from a power outage plan it had announced earlier in the week in the face of extreme weather conditions across Montana, including Jefferson County.

NorthWestern announced on July 23 that it was closely monitoring the extreme weather situation in Montana, with forecasts calling for high winds, high temperatures, and low humidity. If conditions threatened the electrical grid, the company said, it could turn off power in at-risk areas, including those surrounding Butte and Helena.

By July 25, however, conditions had eased. In an email, NorthWestern Energy public relations specialist Jo Dee Black told The Monitor that “based on an assessment of the forecasted conditions, we are confident that a Public Safety Power Shutoff is not imminent for any of our Montana customers at this time.”