May Need to Proactively Turn Off Power for Safety in Portions of 17 Counties: Sierra Foothills, North Bay and San Mateo and Kern Counties
Approximately 184,000 customers may be impacted; the scope has decreased as more information has come in.
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PG&E) Emergency Operations Center continues to monitor a dry, offshore wind event forecast to impact PG&E’s service area on Wednesday and Thursday. PG&E has crews, equipment, vehicles and aircraft on standby to conduct the shutoffs and subsequent inspections, repairs and power restoration.
The sole intent of a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) is to prevent a catastrophic wildfire sparked by electrical equipment during extreme weather events.
Customer Notifications
On Monday afternoon, the company sent out 48-hour advance notifications to customers that it may be proactively turning power off for safety and conducting a PSPS as early as Wednesday afternoon. Today, the company sent out 24-hour advance notifications to those customers in the potential impact area.
The potential safety shutoff is planned for varying start times depending on location. It is expected to affect about 184,000 customers in portions of 17 counties in the Sierra Foothills and the North Bay — including Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sierra, Sonoma, Tehama and Yuba — as well as Kern and San Mateo counties. Tehama County was added Tuesday night.
In some areas, PG&E has been able to reduce the scope of impact, given changing weather information and the company’s ability to sectionalize certain lines. However, as weather continues to develop, the scope may continue to change.
The 48-hour and 24-hour customer notifications were sent via text, email and automated phone calls to customers who have provided their contact information to PG&E. Customers enrolled in the company’s Medical Baseline program who do not verify that they have received these important safety communications will be individually visited by a PG&E employee when possible. A primary focus will be given to those customers who rely on electricity for critical life-sustaining equipment.
Potentially Impacted Counties and Cities
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County
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Customers
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Cities or Unincorporated areas with some customers potentially impacted
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Alpine
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Total: 634
Medical Baseline: 1
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Bear Valley and Unincorporated areas
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Amador
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Total: 10,420
MB: 567
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Fiddletown, Jackson, Pine Grove, Pioneer, Plymouth, River Pines, Sutter Creek, and Volcano
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Butte
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Total: 17,745
MB: 1,326
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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
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Calaveras
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Total: 14,235
MB: 411
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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
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El Dorado
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Total: 39,705
MB: 1,699
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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
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Kern
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Total: 75
MB: 0
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Arvin, Bakersfield, and Lebec
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Lake
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Total: 1,889
MB: 65
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Cobb, Loch Lomond, Middletown, and Unincorporated areas south of Kelseyville
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Mendocino
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Total: 158
MB: 2
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Comminsky Station, Potter Valley, and Yorkville
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Napa
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Total: 7,488
MB: 140
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Angwin, Calistoga, Deer Park, Lake Berryessa, Oakville, Pope Valley, Rutherford, and St Helena
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Nevada
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Total: 43,383
MB: 1,813
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Cedar Ridge, Chicago Park, Emigrant Park, Grass Valley, Nevada City, North San Juan, Penn Valley, Rough And Ready, Smartville, and Washington
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Placer
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Total: 13,410
MB: 581
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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
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Plumas
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Total: 344
MB: 2
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La Porte
|
|
San Mateo
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Total: 372
MB: 11
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La Honda, San Gregorio, Woodside, and Unincorporated San Mateo County
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Sierra
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Total: 1,160
MB: 14
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Alleghany, Downieville, Goodyears Bar, Pike, and Sierra City
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Sonoma
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Total: 26,845
MB: 893
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Annapolis, Boyes Hot Springs, Cloverdale, Fulton, Geyserville, Glen Ellen, Guerneville, Healdsburg, Kenwood, Larkfield, Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Windsor, and Stewarts point
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Tehama
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Total: 748
MB: 12
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Manton, Mill Creek, Mineral, Paynes Creek, and Red Bluff
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Yuba
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Total: 5,504
MB: 312
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Browns Valley, Brownsville, Camptonville, Challenge, Dobbins, Loma Rica, Oregon House, Rackerby Smartsville, Strawberry Valley, and Wheatland
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How Customers Can Prepare
As part of PSPS preparedness efforts, PG&E is asking customers to:
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Plan for medical needs like medications that require refrigeration or devices that need power.
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Identify backup charging methods for phones and keep hard copies of emergency numbers.
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Build or restock your emergency kit with flashlights, fresh batteries, first aid supplies and cash.
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Keep in mind family members who are elderly, younger children and pets.
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Learn more about wildfire risk and what to do before, during and after an emergency to keep your family safe at PG&E’s Safety Action Center.
If a PSPS event is called, PG&E will stage Community Resource Centers in several locations. These centers will be open during daylight hours, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., until power has been restored. Restrooms, bottled water, electronic-device charging and air-conditioned seating for up to 100 will be available at each of these facilities.
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 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation’s cleanest energy to 16 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit www.pge.com and www.pge.com/news.
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MEDIA RELATIONS:
415-973-5930
Source: PG&E Corporation