Fear and uncertainty surrounding the wildfires in California appear to be weighing on shares of Edison International, whose Southern California Edison is the power utility for the areas directly surrounding the city of Los Angeles.

Key Takeaways Shares of Edison International plunged Wednesday as its Southern California Edison subsidiary was forced to shut off power to thousands of customers because of the Los Angeles-area wildfires.

Firefighters are battling to control a series of major fires in the Los Angeles area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena and sent thousands of people frantically fleeing their homes.