"Colorado Power Outages and Flight Disruptions Caused by Extreme Winds and Wildfire Precautions"
Xcel Energy shut down parts of the power grid affecting 55,000 customers in Colorado as a precautionary measure due to strong winds and high wildfire risk, with outages expected to last until Sunday. The shutdown primarily impacts Boulder County and parts of other counties. The company stated that de-energizing power lines is a last resort to reduce wildfire risk and restoration times will depend on wind damage. Emergency officials advised customers with medical needs to prepare for the outages, while National Weather Service issued high wind and wildfire warnings for the area.