Fire risk high for approximately 1,600
Customers in North Bay Saturday morning; and potentially 30,000
Customers in Sierra Foothills Saturday night into Sunday
morning
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced on Friday
evening that it will begin proactively turning off power for safety
as part of a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) in portions of
several North Bay communities early Saturday morning and the power
will be out through at least Saturday afternoon.
To help reduce the risk of wildfire and keep our customers,
their families and their homes and businesses safe, the company
will turn off power to approximately 1,600 customers total in these
areas of extreme fire risk:
- Napa County: Portions of
unincorporated Napa County and Lake Berryessa
- Solano County: Portions of
Suisun City, and unincorporated areas near Vacaville and
Winters
- Yolo County: Unincorporated
areas near Davis and Winters
“The safety of our customers and the communities we serve is our
most important responsibility. We know how much our customers rely
on electric service, and our decision tonight to turn off power is
to protect our communities experiencing extreme fire danger,” said
Michael Lewis, senior vice president of Electric Operations,
PG&E.
Through its Wildfire Safety Operations Center, PG&E also
continues to monitor weather conditions in parts of the Sierra
foothills. Peak fire risk in these areas is forecasted to begin at
around 9 p.m. Saturday and last through roughly noon on Sunday. A
potential PSPS may affect approximately 30,000 customers total in
the following areas:
- Butte County: Portions of
Paradise, Oroville, Bangor, Forest Ranch, Chico, Berry Creek,
Palermo
- Yuba County: Portions of Browns
Valley, Oregon House, Marysville, Wheatland, Rackerby
- Nevada County: Portions of
Auburn, Grass Valley, Smartville, Rough and Ready, Penn Valley
- El Dorado County: Portions of
Pilot Hill, Greenwood, Georgetown, Cool
- Placer County: Portions of
Lincoln
If you live in these communities, PG&E will attempt to
contact you via telephone, text and email. You can also type in
your address through PG&E’s Service Impact Map
(pge.com/eventmap) to determine whether you’re affected.
PG&E is working directly with CAL FIRE, Cal OES, and other
state and local agencies to prepare for these safety events.
On Friday morning, the National Weather Service issued Red Flag
Warnings for the Central Valley and the North Bay hills, starting
Friday evening or Saturday morning and lasting until Sunday
afternoon.
In addition, weather forecasts from PG&E’s Wildfire Safety
Operations Center showed strong and intensifying winds in the
Sacramento Valley and North Bay beginning Friday night into
Saturday, with sustained winds between 15 and 30 mph, and local
gusts of at least 40 mph. At the same time, northeasterly winds
will develop over the Sierra.
After a forecasted Saturday lull, winds are expected to pick
back up again beginning Saturday night through Sunday morning along
the slopes and foothills of the northern and central Sierra.
Public Safety Power Shutoff Criteria
No single factor drives a Public Safety Power Shutoff, as each
situation is unique. PG&E
carefully reviews a combination of many criteria when
determining if power should be
turned off for safety. These factors generally include, but are
not limited to:
- A Red Flag Warning declared by the
National Weather Service
- Low humidity levels, generally 20
percent and below
- Forecasted sustained winds generally
above 25 mph and wind gusts in excess of approximately 45 mph,
depending on location and site-specific conditions such as
temperature, terrain and local climate
- Condition of dry fuel on the ground and
live vegetation (moisture content)
- On-the-ground, real-time observations
from PG&E’s Wildfire Safety Operations Center and observations
from PG&E field crews
Customer notifications
PG&E remains committed to providing notice to customers in
advance of a Public Safety
Power Shutoff, when possible. The company’s goal, dependent on
weather, is to send customer alerts prior to shutting off power.
PG&E will do so through automated calls, texts and emails. The
company will also use pge.com and social media channels, and keep
local news and radio outlets informed and updated.
Customers can also type in their address through PG&E’s
Service Impact Map (pge.com/eventmap) to determine whether they’re
affected.
The cadence and frequency of notifications will depend, however,
on the forecasted extreme weather conditions and how quickly those
threats change, among other factors.
How our customers can prepare
As part of these preparedness efforts, PG&E is asking
customers to:
- Update their contact information at
pge.com/mywildfirealerts or by calling 1-866-743-6589 during normal
business hours. PG&E will use this information to alert
customers through automated calls, texts, and emails, when
possible, prior to, and during, a Public Safety Power Shutoff.
- 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 numbers.
- Build or restock your emergency kit
with flashlights, fresh batteries, first aid supplies and
cash.
- Keep in mind family members who are
elderly, younger children and pets. Information and tips including
a safety plan checklist are available at
pge.com/wildfiresafety.
Inspections and restoration of power
After the extreme weather has passed and it is safe to do so,
PG&E crews will work to visually inspect each mile of the
impacted power lines to ensure they are free from damage and safe
to energize.
Inspections will take place during daylight hours and, in most
cases, PG&E expects to
be able to restore power within 24 to 48 hours after extreme
weather has passed. However, depending on weather conditions or if
any repairs are needed, outages (weather event plus restoration
time) could last longer than 48 hours. For planning purposes,
PG&E suggests customers prepare for multiple-day outages.
Like a winter storm outage, during a Public Safety Power
Shutoff, outage information, including maps showing which areas may
by impacted, will be available on pge.com.
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E
Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas
and electric energy companies in the United States. Based in San
Francisco, with more than 24,000 employees, the company delivers
some of the nation’s cleanest energy to nearly 16 million people in
Northern and Central California. For more information, visit
www.pge.com/ and www.pge.com/en/about/newsroom/index.page.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190607005513/en/
Media Relations415.973.5930
PG&E (NYSE:PCG)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Mär 2024 bis Apr 2024
PG&E (NYSE:PCG)
Historical Stock Chart
Von Apr 2023 bis Apr 2024