PG&E Shutoff Begins In Sonoma County: 28,000 To Lose Power

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — UPDATED 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23: Pacific Gas and Electric Company confirmed Wednesday morning its plan to move forward with a Public Safety Power Shutoff in parts of Napa and Sonoma counties in the North Bay, San Mateo County on the Peninsula and 14 other California counties, including nearby Lake and Mendocino.

"This PSPS decision was based on forecasts of dry, hot and windy weather that poses a higher risk for damage and sparks on the electric system and rapid wildfire spread," PG&E officials said in a news release just before 10 a.m. Wednesday.

Some 28,460 customers in Sonoma County are among 179,000 in 17 counties who will be impacted by the shutoff.

Other affected counties include Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Kern, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, San Mateo, Sierra, Tehama and Yuba.

PG&E will begin shutting off power at 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Sierra Foothills, 3 p.m. Wednesday in the North Bay counties, and approximately 1 a.m. Thursday in affected areas of San Mateo and Kern counties.

"Forecasts indicate the peak period of winds should end about noon Thursday in the Sierra Foothills, North Bay and San Mateo County, and around noon Friday in Kern County," PG&E officials said.

Sonoma County cities and communities impacted by the shutoff, according to PG&E, include: Annapolis, Boyes Hot Springs, Cloverdale, Fulton, Geyserville, Glen Ellen, Guerneville, Healdsburg [not within Healdsburg city limits], Kenwood, Larkfield, Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Windsor and Stewarts Point.

The Sonoma County Office of Education said all schools in the Geyserville Unified School District and some schools in the Rincon Valley Union School District and San Rosa City Schools will be closed Thursday because of PG&E's Public Safety Power Shutoff.

The Rincon Valley Union School District will close Whited, Binkley, Madrone, Austin Creek and Sequoia elementary schools and Rincon Valley Charter School's Sequoia campus.

Santa Rosa City Schools will close Hidden Valley Elementary School, Santa Rosa Accelerated Charter School, Rincon Valley Middle School and Maria Carrillo High School.

The Sonoma County Office of Education said it receives official closure reports from superintendents only and it does not determine whether a school should be closed.

The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday it is always ready for emergencies such as this.

"Our primary concern is public safety," said sheriff's Sgt. Juan Valencia. "We will be patrolling neighborhoods and staying visible."

Sheriff's officials advised residents to remain aware of their surroundings and:

• Do not call dispatch for information. Leave those lines open for urgent matters.
• Call 911 if you see crime happening, see suspicious activity, or have a life-threatening emergency.
• Call 211 if you need services.
• Call 1-800-743-5002 for PG&E power outage information.
• Stop at all dark traffic lights. They are stop signs when the power is out.

PG&E is opening community resource centers with restrooms, bottled water, electronic-device charging and air-conditioned seating for up to 100 people.

The centers will be open beginning at 8 a.m. Thursday and stay open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. for the remainder of the shutoff.

In Sonoma County, community resource centers will be open at the Cloverdale Citrus Fair, 1 Citrus Fair; the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building, 1351 Maple Ave. in Santa Rosa; and the Hanna Boys Center, 17000 Arnold Dr. in Sonoma.

In Napa County, the center is located at Napa County Fairgrounds, 1435 North Oak St., in Calistoga.

More locations are being confirmed; the most updated list of center locations can be found at Pge.com/pspsupdates.

The company says it notified potentially impacted customers Monday and again on Tuesday, and will continue to notify, via automated calls, texts and emails — for customers who’ve provided their contact information to PG&E.

"It’s important to remember that customers not impacted by the PSPS may experience power outages due to PG&E equipment damaged during this wind event; those customers will not be notified in advance," company officials said.

"It is also very possible that customers may be affected by a power shutoff even though they are not experiencing extreme weather conditions in their specific location. This is because the electric system relies on power lines working together to provide electricity across cities, counties and regions."

Once the high winds subside, PG&E will inspect the de-energized lines to ensure they were not damaged during the wind event, and then restore power. PG&E will safely restore power in stages as quickly as possible, with the goal of restoring the vast majority of customers within 48 hours after the weather has passed.

"PG&E is preparing to fly out of the Ukiah Municipal airport to ensure help the inspection process go faster, as we receive the weather all-clear, so customers can have their power turned back on quickly," said Deanna Contreras, spokeswoman for PG&E in the North Bay.

"You may also see two helicopters coming in and out of the Angwin airport late tonight or in the morning to inspect the lines in the impacted areas of Napa County," Contreras said. "The helicopters are only flying along lines to inspect for damage to ensure it’s safe to re-energize. And we are prepared to fly at least two helicopters to inspect the lines in Sonoma County, one out of the Santa Rosa airport and one at the Petaluma airport."

ORIGINAL POST, Oct. 22, 2019: The number of PG&E customers who may lose power Wednesday if PG&E goes ahead with another fire-weather related public safety power shutoff this week has been reduced from more than 200,000 to 189,000 in 16 counties — including 27,824 in Sonoma County, officials with the utility company said Tuesday.

PG&E says it is continuing to monitor the forecast for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (for Kern County) that shows the potential for hot and windy weather in portions of PG&E’s service area in the Sierra Foothills, the North Bay, San Mateo County and Kern County.

A National Weather Service fire weather watch was upgraded Tuesday to a red flag warning beginning at noon Wednesday through 4 p.m. Thursday for the valleys and coastline of the North Bay, the hills and valleys of the East Bay, and the Santa Cruz mountains.

"We have been able to reduce the scope given changing weather information and our ability to sectionalize certain lines," said Deanna Contreras, PG&E's North Bay spokeswoman. "The reductions have occurred in various communities. To be clear, a Public Safety Power Shutoff event has NOT been called at this time. A decision will be made on Wednesday, Oct. 23, based on the forecast."

PG&E has accepted an offer of technical assistance and aircraft to help limit the scope and minimize the impact of a potential public safety power shutoff that may go into effect mid-week, CEO Bill Johnson said Tuesday evening at a news conference.

PG&E plans to test a California Highway Patrol airplane equipped with infrared technology to inspect power lines in preparation for the dry windy weather. If useful, such aircraft could speed the process of getting the power back on by allowing line inspection to continue after dark.

"I understand that people are not happy when their power is off," Johnson said, referring to hostilities reported in connection with the last shutoff two weeks ago, asking the public not to direct their anger at PG&E field personnel.

It's not yet clear whether the shutoff will go forward, and PG&E plans to make that decision Wednesday morning, before the forecasted arrival of dry windy weather. If high-risk conditions do not occur, however, they hope to keep the power on.

As of 4 p.m. Tuesday, here are the Sonoma County cities and communities that PG&E now says will be impacted should the shutoff happen: Annapolis, Cloverdale, Geyserville, Glen Ellen, Guerneville, Healdsburg, Kenwood, Larkfield, Santa Rosa, Sonoma and Windsor.

• PREVIOUS: Another PG&E Shutoff: 33K Sonoma County Customers Notified

Customers were notified by text and automated phone calls starting Monday afternoon, and PG&E said an employee will knock on the doors of customers with medical issues who are enrolled in its Medical Baseline program. In Sonoma County, the number of medical baseline customers who would be impacted was down to 909 as of Tuesday afternoon.

"For potentially impacted customers who have provided PG&E with their contact information, we are contacting them by phone, email and text message," Contreras said. "Another round of notifications is scheduled for today. If you do NOT receive a notification from PG&E, you are NOT in the areas we anticipate that would be impacted.

"Please ensure that we have your most current personal contact information by calling us at 1-800-743-5000."

Here is the latest PG&E breakdown on impacted counties, customers and communities:

Alpine County: 634 customers, 1 medical base customer in Bear Valley and unincorporated areas.

Amador County: 10,420 customers, 567 medical base customers, in Fiddletown, Jackson, Pine Grove, Pioneer, Plymouth, River Pines, Sutter Creek and Volcano.

Butte County: 17,912 customers including 1,339 medical base, in Bangor, Berry Creek, Brush Creek, Butte Meadows, Butte Valley, Chico, Clipper Mills, Cohasset, Concow, Feather Falls, Forbestown, Forest Ranch, Hurleton, Magalia, East Oroville, Palermo, Paradise, Paradise Pines, Rackerby, Stirling City and Yankee Hill.

Calaveras County: 14,829 customers including 447 medical base, in Arnold, Avery, Camp Connell, Dorrington, Douglas Flat, Glencoe, Hathaway Pines, Mokelumne Hill, Mountain Ranch, Murphys, Rail Road Flat, Sheep Ranch, Tamarack, West Point, White Pines and Wilseyville.

El Dorado County: 39,786 customers, including 1,917 medical base, in Aukum, Cameron Park, Canyon, Camino, Coloma, Cool, Diamond Springs, El Dorado, Fair Play, Garden Valley, Georgetown, Greenwood, Grizzly Flats, Kelsey, Kyburz, Lotus, Mount Aukum, Omo Ranch, Pacific House, Pilot Hill, Placerville, Pollock Pines, Rescue, Shingle Springs, Silver Fork, Somerset and Twin Bridges.

Kern County: 75 customers, none medical base, in Arvin, Bakersfield and Lebec.

Lake County: 1,889 customers, including 65 medical base, in Cobb, Loch Lomond, Middletown and Kelseyville.

Mendocino County: 158, including 2 medical base, in Comminsky Station, Potter Valley and Yorkville.

Napa County: 7,533 customers, including 140 medical base, in Angwin, Calistoga, Deer Park, Lake Berryessa, Oakville, Pope Valley, Rutherford and St. Helena.

Nevada County: 42,401 customers, including 1,814 medical base, in Cedar Ridge, Chicago Park, Emigrant Park, Grass Valley, Nevada City, North San Juan, Penn Valley, Rough And Ready, Smartville and Washington.

Placer County: 16,994 customers, including 745 medical base, in Alta, Applegate, Auburn, Baxter, Colfax, Dutch Flat, Emigrant Gap, Foresthill, Gold Run, Meadow Vista, Newcastle, Sheridan, Weimar, Christian Valley, Unincorporated areas of Placer County North and West of Lincoln.

Plumas County: 344 customers, including two medical base, in La Porte.

San Mateo County: 907 customers, including 15 medical base, in La Honda, Woodside and unincorporated San Mateo County

Sierra County: 1,160 customers, including 14 medical base, in Alleghany, Downieville, Goodyears Bar, Pike and Sierra City.

Sonoma County: 27,824 customers, including 909 medical base, in Annapolis, Cloverdale, Geyserville, Glen Ellen, Guerneville, Healdsburg, Kenwood, Larkfield, Santa Rosa, Sonoma and Windsor.

Yuba County: 5,504 customers, including 312 medical base, in Browns Valley, Brownsville, Camptonville, Challenge, Dobbins, Loma Rica, Oregon House, Rackerby Smartsville, Strawberry Valley and Wheatland.

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.