How to resolve AdBlock issue? PG&E turned off the power to 345,000 customers in 34 counties due to red flag warning conditions, with strong winds reported across much of the state.
The area for the public safety power shutoff, or PSPS, includes Lake County, where 21,621 customers – 1,573 in the medical baseline program – are impacted.
During a 6 p.m. Monday evening briefing, PG&E said the all-clear had been called in many of the impacted counties and it had restored power to 95,000 customers and was expecting to have the remaining 250,000 customers reenergized by 10 p.m. Tuesday.
At 10 p.m. Monday, the company said the number of customers with restored power was up to 156,000.
PG&E told Lake County News later on Monday night that a partial all-clear had been called for Lake County. Shortly before 10:30 p.m. about 5 percent of the county’s customers had their power restored, with the rest to have their power back by Tuesday night.
The company said its address lookup tool includes restoration times.
Preliminary data showed at least 13 instances of weather-related damage and hazards in the PSPS-affected areas. The company said examples include downed lines and vegetation on power lines, which could have caused wildland fires had power lines not been deenergized.
PG&E Senior Meteorologist Scott Strenfel said during the wind event there were high wind speeds recorded around the outage area.
The company said the highest wind gust reported was 89 miles per hour in Sonoma County, where sustained winds topped out at 76 miles per hour.
Lake County had the fourth-highest wind speed for gusts, 71 miles per hour, and the second-highest sustained wind speed, 57 miles per hour.
“This was a very widespread, very strong wind event, the strongest of the season, and it brought in an ultra-dry air mass,” Strenfel said.
Strenfel said he’s seen reports of relative humidity down as low as 3 percent, “which is just absolutely bone dry.” Such low humidity conditions dry out vegetation and make it more susceptible to fire.
A second round of winds is expected on Monday night into Tuesday morning. He said some areas of the North Bay, primarily over elevated terrain like Mount Saint Helena, were starting to see winds picking back up. In The Geysers geothermal steamfield area, he said there were 40-mile-per-hour winds on Monday evening.
Strenfel said a ridge of high pressure from the eastern Pacific is going to build up over California in the coming days. Conditions will be warmer and drier than normal. “We don’t expect any significant rainfall for the next 10 days,” but also no return of significant offshore winds.
Mark Quinlan, PG&E’s incident commander, said that due to running out of daylight, the company’s fleet of 65 helicopters that is uses to patrol equipment for damage before reenergizing lines after shutoff events was being grounded for the night.
However, he said a plane with a high-resolution camera and infrared technology that can fly at night was being deployed to patrol equipment, primarily the transmission system.
At the same time, he said patrols will continue on the ground where it’s safe to do so. The company has 1,800 employees that are working on the ground to look for equipment damage.
PG&E opened 106 community resource centers across the outage area, with 99 of them still open as of Monday night.
Community members can charge medical and personal devices, get snacks and water, and even blankets if necessary.
The centers stayed open until 10 p.m. Monday and will reopen for a full day on Tuesday at 8 a.m., the company said.
In Lake County, all seven community resource centers remain available. They can be found at the following locations:
– Clearlake Senior Community Center, 3245 Bowers Ave., Clearlake.
– Mountain High Coffee, 16295 Highway 175, Cobb.
– Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians Red Hills Property, 7130 Red Hills Road, Kelseyville.
– Konocti Vista Casino, 2755 Mission Rancheria Road, Lakeport.
– Twin Pine Casino and Hotel, 22223 Highway 29, Middletown.
– Community Baptist Church, 2877 State Highway 20, Nice.
– Upper Lake Middle School, 725 Old Lucerne Road.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
