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APS outlines wildfire mitigation measures for Prescott Valley, including mesh-wrapped poles, AI cameras and public-safety power shutoffs
Summary
An APS Northern Arizona official described vegetation management, defensible space around poles, fire-mesh wraps for wooden poles, drone infrared patrols and AI cameras to detect smoke. The company also explained its public-safety power shutoff and non-reclose strategies for high fire-risk feeders.
Prescott Valley — Frank Sanderson, Northern Arizona division director for Arizona Public Service, briefed the Prescott Valley Town Council on March 20 about seasonal and year-round measures APS uses to reduce wildfire risk, including vegetation management, pole-level defensible space, fire-mesh wraps on wooden poles, drone infrared patrols and AI-enabled camera monitoring.
Sanderson told the council APS clears about 10 feet of vegetation around devices that can emit sparks. “We clear 10 feet of vegetation around each structure that has any type of device that is spark emitting,” Sanderson said. He described a “fire mesh wrap” installed on wooden poles that dissipates heat as a fire burns through, and said the company is replacing traditional spark-emitting fuses in high-fire-risk areas with non-sparking fusing.
Sanderson said APS has identified 1,500 feeders (circuits) systemwide, 237 of which are designated high-fire-risk, “the majority of those being in Northern Arizona.” He described expanded patrols in the lead-up to fire season, the use of drones with infrared sensors to inspect lines from the air, and a program of weather stations and advanced fire-modeling software APS uses to predict dangerous weather conditions five to seven days in advance.
On preemptive outages, Sanderson explained the company’s “non-reclose” and public-safety power shutoff (PSPS) strategies. Non-reclose changes the automatic reclosing behavior of relays during high fire risk so lines remain open and are patrolled by crews; a PSPS, he said, “is a tool of last resort” and would be coordinated with county emergency managers and municipal leadership. Sanderson described a staged notification approach for customers and said APS asks medically dependent customers to self-identify so restorations can be prioritized.
Why it matters: The measures Sanderson described — vegetation management, equipment upgrades and predictive monitoring — are intended to reduce the chance that utility infrastructure will spark wildfires and to improve detection and response time in the Prescott Valley area and across Yavapai County.
Council response and details Council members asked technical questions about transformers and older equipment. Sanderson said rust on a transformer alone does not necessarily require replacement but that APS inspects sealing, oil leaks and loading. He also recounted APS’s ongoing investments to replace and upgrade infrastructure in fire-mitigation areas.
Ending: Sanderson encouraged local officials to help communicate preparedness information to residents; the presentation concluded with council commendations for APS’s efforts.
