Protest On Santa Rosa Electrical Tower Leaves 22,000 In The Dark

SANTA ROSA - Police in Santa Rosa said PG&E had to cut power to roughly 22,000 customers Wednesday night while negotiators talked a man down from his apparent protest at the top of an electrical transmission tower.

Around 8:45 p.m. they took to social media to ask that people in the area of Pierson Street and Santa Rosa Creek, west of U.S. Highway 101, stay clear of police activity at that location.

As of 9:18 p.m., however, police said the man had come back down and power would be restored shortly.

The man did not appear to be suicidal, but rather he seems to have climbed the tower in protest. Police were uncertain of the exact reasons for his protest, but said the man was taken in for a mental health evaluation.

A spokesman for PG&E said that power was cut to 22,018 customers at 8:48 p.m. Crews began restoring power at 9:12 p.m., and every customer affected had their electricity back on by 9:26 p.m.

-Bay City News, image via Santa Rosa police