(CNN) Just as firefighters got a grip on a blaze that tore through the swanky Pacific Palisades, other Californians are at risk of unpredictable wildfires this week.

About 184,000 customers could have their power shut off this week to lessen the risk, Pacific Gas & Electric officials said Tuesday evening.

"We understand the hardship created by these cutoffs, and there are safety risks on both sides, but again we've seen the impact of wildfires, both over the years and recently in Southern California, and we're determined not to let that happen," PG&E CEO Bill Johnson told reporters.

The potential power shutoff could affect 16 counties in the Sierra Foothills and the North Bay, including Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, San Mateo, Sierra, Sonoma, Sutter, and Yuba counties, PG&E's Mark Quinlan, senior director of the company's emergency preparedness and response unit, said.

The company began Monday notifying customers by texts, emails and automated phone calls they could have their power shut off, and did so again Tuesday.

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