Shutdown not necessary in Niwot

Many homes in Niwot are on large lots, not anything like the tiny packed lots of many subdivisions in the Marshall fire. We've endured many, many severe windstorms in the past with zero wildfire events occurring during that time, and this pre-emptive shutdown seemed pretty much the lawyerly response to the fallout of lawsuits from the Marshall fire. Being without power for over 24 hours was excessive and unnecessary. The city of Longmont, which owns their power distribution company, kept their power on the whole time, even though there are abundant numbers of homes on smaller lots and with overhead utilities.

I worry that this pre-emptive shutdown will set a precedent where every predicted windstorm will precipitate another unnecessary shutdown.

Also, as others noted, the notice that went out ahead of time indicated that there may be a shutdown, and then as the cutoff time approached it transitioned to a 'will occur', with an indeterminate end time that left it possible that it could be days. These durations pretty much ensure that any refrigerated items will be ruined, and no home heating will be available.