PG&E Power Shutdowns: 600,000 Without Power, Restorations Begin

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA — Hundreds of thousands of Pacific Gas and Electric Company customers across California remain in the dark Thursday as the utility company implemented the second phase of its Public Safety Planned Shutoffs amid a forecast of extreme weather and fire conditions. By midday, PG&E began restoring power to some customers as weather conditions improved in parts of the affected areas.

Roughly 600,000 customers were still without power Thursday morning as a result of the shutoffs, which began early Wednesday, according to PG&E.

Update: PG&E Power Shutdowns: Power Restored To Over 500,000 Customers

PG&E initially announced nearly 800,000 customers in Northern and Central California would be affected by the power shutoffs, which the utility based on forecasts of dry, hot and windy weather including potential fire risk.

The first phase of power shutoffs started just after midnight Wednesday and impacted about 513,000 customers in Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Solano, Sonoma, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo and Yuba counties, according to PG&E. Some additional customers in Calaveras and Mendocino were included in the second phase.

The second phase of outages began late Wednesday night and continued early Thursday morning. The second phase impacted about 234,000 customers in Alameda, Alpine, Contra Costa, Mariposa, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Stanislaus and Tuolumne counties.

A third phase for portions of Kern County was scheduled for late Thursday morning. Due to changing weather forecasts, PG&E expects this phase to impact about 4,000 customers. Earlier forecasts predicted about 43,000 customers would be impacted.

Utility Giant Stands By its Decision

In a headline, the Los Angeles Times wrote that "California's huge, humiliating power outages expose the vulnerabilities of PG&E's power grid."

The outages may force the state to confront its reliance on a power grid that depends on an antiquated technology: electric lines strung across wooden poles, the Times wrote.

The California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday blasted PG&E amid the shutoffs.

During the commission's regular meeting at its San Francisco office, CPUC President Marybel Batjer called the way PG&E has been managing the shutoffs "unacceptable."

"I understand the impact these events have on every Californian and deeply share the public's concern regarding this current PSPS process," Batjer said.

"The management and response of the company PG&E to the events, to the PSPS, have been absolutely unacceptable. The impact to the communities, the individual people, to the commerce of our state, the safety of our people, has been less than exemplary. This cannot be the new normal. We can't accept it as the new normal and we won't."

Serious questions have been asked about how PG&E's shutoffs have unfolded, but there was some light humor to be found.

Police in Pleasanton had a little fun with a Facebook post featuring a map of the entire state marked in red for potential shutdowns.

"Please do not call 911 and ask when the power will come back on," the post read. "Our dispatchers are very good but they cannot see into the future. They will tell you they do not know and then disconnect so they can answer the other hundred calls from people asking about the power being out."

Amid mounting criticism, PG&E stood by its decision to shut off power.

"We faced a choice between hardship or safety, and we chose safety," PG&E Vice President Michael Lewis said in a statement Thursday morning. "We deeply apologize for the inconvenience and the hardship, but we stand by the decision because the safety of our customers and communities must come first."

Strong winds, low humidity and warm temperatures prompted the National Weather Service to issue a red flag warning for much of the San Francisco Bay Area and elsewhere in Northern California. This weather event has the potential to bring the strongest offshore winds to the area since the October 2017 North Bay fires, according to weather officials.

The red flag warning will be in effect until 5 p.m. Thursday for the East and North Bay hills and valleys, and until noon Thursday for the Santa Cruz mountains, according to the National Weather Service.

"Our meteorological and operations teams are actively monitoring the weather and this evolving situation, and we are working directly with state and local agencies to help our customers and communities through this event safely," PG&E Vice President Sumeet Singh said.

Singh said the inclement weather prompting the outages is expected to subside around midday Thursday in the Bay Area, Santa Cruz and the Sierra Foothills, and around midday in the Kern and Bakersfield areas. Inspections could begin then on the utility's transmission and distribution lines and equipment.

Once inspections start, "it could be several days to restore power," he said.

Restorations Begin

Roughly 126,000 customers impacted by the outages were restored by 6 a.m. Thursday, according to PG&E.

Safety inspections, repairs and power restoration will take place in specific areas once a weather "all clear" is given, according to PG&E. The utility has 45 helicopter crews and more than 6,300 personnel on the ground ready to do inspections.

By Thursday afternoon, improving weather conditions allowed for an "all clear" to be issued for safety inspections, repair and restoration efforts to begin in most of the impacted counties.

Cal Fire has stepped up its staffing statewide due to the power shutoffs and red flag conditions across the state.

Thousands of electric customers in Southern California also face power outages.

Southern California Edison, the major utility company in Southern California, announced more than 140,000 customers face outages. About 30,000 San Diego Gas & Electric customers in San Diego County could also be affected by public safety power shutoffs.

In the meantime, AT&T has announced that it will provide unlimited talk, text and data access through Oct. 13 to customers affected by the shutoffs.

Closures

Many schools in the Bay Area have canceled classes as a result of the outages. The University of California at Berkeley and Evergreen Valley College in the southeast San Jose foothills also confirmed they will be closed Thursday.

In Contra Costa County, officials announced Thursday morning that Mt. Diablo State Park would be closed due to high winds and the threat of wildfires.

Safety Resources

PG&E offered the following preparedness tips to customers:

• Update contact information at pge.com/mywildfirealerts or by calling 866-743- 6589 during normal business hours. PG&E will use this information to alert customers through automated calls, texts and emails.
• Plan for medical needs like medications that require refrigeration or devices that need power.
• Identify backup charging methods for phones and keep hard copies of emergency contacts.
• Build or restock emergency kits with flashlights, fresh batteries, first aid supplies and cash.
• Keep in mind elderly family members, younger children and pets. Information and tips including a safety plan checklist are available at pge.com/psps.
• Monitor PG&E's weather forecasting webpage at pge.com/weather.

PG&E opened community resource centers in a variety of locations Wednesday. The centers will remain open during daylight hours until power has been restored, according to the utility. Restrooms, bottled water, electronic-device charging and air-conditioned seating will be available at these facilities.

• Alameda: Merritt College Lot B: Leona St., Oakland 94508
• Amador: Mace Meadows Golf Course: 26570 Fairway Drive Pioneer 95666
• Butte: Bird Street School: 1421 Bird St., Oroville 95965
• Butte: 14144 Lakeridge Court, Magalia 95954
• Calaveras: Meadowmont Shopping Center: 2182 Highway 4, Arnold 95223
• Contra Costa: Bishop Ranch Parking Lot: 2600 Camino Ramon, San Ramon 94583
• Colusa, Glenn: 839 Newville Road, Orland 95963
• El Dorado: El Dorado Fairgrounds: 100 Placerville Drive, Placerville 95667
• El Dorado: Rolling Hills Christian Church: 800 White Rock Road, El Dorado Hills 95762
• Humboldt: Eureka Redwood Acres Fairgrounds: 3750 Harris St., Eureka 95503
• Lake: Clearlake Senior Center: 3245 Bowers Ave., Clearlake 95422
• Mariposa: Coulterville Fire Department: 10293 Ferry Road, Coulterville 95311
• Mendocino: 1775 N. State St., Ukiah 95482
• Napa: Calistoga Fairgrounds: 1601 N. Oak Calistoga 94515 or Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Parking Lot: 1001 Fairgrounds Drive, Vallejo 94589
• Nevada: Sierra College Grass Valley: 250 Sierra College Drive, Grass Valley 95945
• Placer: Gold Country Fairgrounds Parking Lot: 209 Fairgate Road, Auburn95603
• Plumas: 2140 Main St., La Porte 95981
• San Mateo: Pasta Moon Restaurant: 845 Main St., Half Moon Bay 94019
• Santa Clara: Avaya Stadium: 1123 Coleman Ave., San Jose 95110
• Santa Cruz: Twin Lakes Church: 2701 Cabrillo College Drive, Aptos 95003
• Shasta, Tehama: Shasta College, 11555 Old Oregon Trail Redding 96003
• Sierra: Loganville Campground Parking Lot: Highway 49, Sierra City 96125
• Solano: Mission Church: 6391 Leisure Town Road, Vacaville 95687
• Solano: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Park: 1001 Fairgrounds Drive, Vallejo 94589
• Sonoma: Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building: 1351 Maple Ave., Santa Rosa 95404
• Stanislaus: Westley Hotel: 8615 CA-33, Westley 95387
• Tuolumne: Mother Lode Fairgrounds: 220 Southgate Drive, Sonora 95370
• Yolo: Mariani Nut Company Lot: Southeast corner of E. Edwards Street & Railroad Avenue, Winters 95694
• Yuba: 9185 Marysville Road, Oregon House 95962

Additional community resource centers were scheduled to open at 8 a.m. Thursday at the following locations:

• Humboldt: Redwood Acres Fairgrounds: 3750 Harris St., Eureka 95503
• Kern: Buck Owens Crystal Palace: 2800 Buck Owens Blvd., Bakersfield 93308
• Marin: Marin Gateway Shopping Center: 150 Donohue St., Sausalito 94965
• Sonoma: Hanna Boys Center: 17000 Arnold Drive, Sonoma 95476

Transportation and Traffic

Bay Area Rapid Transit service should not be affected during the shutoff, according to the transit agency. BART officials said they have the ability to pull power from other sections of its traction power supply system to replace any power lost in the shutoff event.

Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit trains will operate on the normal train schedule during the shutoff event and stations without power will remain open. SMART officials, however, said passengers should be prepared for delays.

The Caldecott Tunnel, a highway tunnel through the Berkeley Hills between Oakland and Orinda, will remain open during the shutoff. The Tom Lantos Tunnel near Pacifica also is set to remain open. PG&E provided generators to Caltrans in order to keep both tunnels open.

Related:

• Over 500,000 Without Power In NorCal As PG&E Starts Power Shutdowns
• Red Flag Warning Issued For Much Of NorCal: NWS
• Cal Fire Increases Staffing Amid Fire Danger Across California
• CPUC Blasts PG&E: 'This Cannot Be New Normal'
• BART Service Uninterrupted During Power Shutoff
• SMART Trains On Normal Schedule; Delays Expected Due To Shutoff
• Caldecott Tunnel To Stay Open During Power Shutoff
• SDG&E Public Safety Power Shutoffs Possible In San Diego County

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.