Santa Cruz County Power Outage History
2018–2025 · California
Bottom 20% least reliable nationally — frequent and/or long outages. How grades are calculated
Outages by year
Outages by month (seasonality)
Worst outage events on record
| Date | Duration | Customers affected | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 16, 2020 | 1 hrs | 89,427 (76%) | Wildfire |
| Dec 16, 2020 | 0 hrs | 63,035 (53%) | Coastal Flood |
| Oct 27, 2019 | 3 hrs | 57,052 (48%) | Wildfire |
| Oct 28, 2019 | 7 hrs | 56,643 (48%) | Wildfire |
| Oct 28, 2019 | 4 hrs | 56,627 (48%) | Wildfire |
Over the 8 years from 2018 to 2025, Santa Cruz County recorded 1,938 distinct power outage events, averaging 4.2 hours per event.
The single worst outage on record in Santa Cruz County started August 16, 2020 (Wildfire), lasting 1 hours and leaving up to 89,427 customers without power (76% of the county) at its peak.
October has historically been the worst month for outages in Santa Cruz County, with 210 events recorded during that month across the dataset.
Based on this history, Santa Cruz County earns a Reliability Grade of F, placing it in the 6th percentile nationally for grid reliability (higher percentile = more reliable).
Sized for Santa Cruz County's outage profile
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Similar counties in California
Counties with the closest reliability grade and national percentile to Santa Cruz County.
| County | Grade | National percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Del Norte County | F | 6th |
| Humboldt County | F | 5th |
| Tehama County | F | 7th |
| Mendocino County | F | 5th |
| Napa County | F | 7th |
FAQ
How often does power go out in Santa Cruz County?
Between 2018 and 2025, Santa Cruz County recorded 1,938 outage events, averaging 4.2 hours each.
What is Santa Cruz County's reliability grade?
Santa Cruz County has a Reliability Grade of F, in the 6th national percentile.
What was the worst power outage in Santa Cruz County?
The worst outage on record started August 16, 2020 (Wildfire), lasting 1 hours and affecting up to 89,427 customers.