Winds knocking out power to thousands in Denver metro area [Video]

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — More than 7,500 Xcel Energy customers were without power Monday afternoon as strong winds buffeted Front Range communities.

As of 3:45 p.m., the energy giant’s outage map showed about 130 outage orders stretching from Boulder and Nederland to the northwest, along the foothills corridor and going all the way south as Roxborough Park. Denver and its suburbs also showed a number of outages, but those weren’t affecting many customers, according to Xcel’s outage map.

The largest outage reported as of 2:40 p.m. was in the Golden area. Xcel’s map said more than 2,600 customers were without power and that the expected restoration time was 4:45 p.m.

The spokesperson said the system is set to wildfire safety operations, meaning that when wind damages electrical equipment and causes an outage, the outages may be more frequent and …