MENDOCINO Co., 6/7/19 — A red flag weather warning has been issued for much of the North Bay Area, as well as a large part of the northern Central Valley and the Sierra Foothills, meaning that people should expect high winds, in the 15 to 25 mph range, and temperatures approaching or even surpassing 100 degrees. As of time of publication the warning has not been extended into Mendocino County.
The warning also means that Pacific Gas and Electric will be shutting off power to some communities in this area, and may shut off the power to more depending on how conditions develop. As of late Friday evening, the utility had announced that they would definitely be shutting off power to about 1,600 customers in the North Bay specifically in Napa, Solano, and Yolo counties, beginning Saturday morning around 6 a.m. They also issued a warning that another 30,000 might be affected further east in the Sierra Foothills. (scroll down for the complete list)
Again, no part of Mendocino County is covered by the red flag warning, nor has PG&E announced any plans to shut off power to any part of Mendo. It seems, for now, that we will not be affected by this warning. But it is only early June, and as the summer gets hotter, we should expect warnings and potential outages up here. PG&E provides an overview of recommended preparation tips on their website, and will be holding an informational workshop in Mendocino County about the planned shut offs in July. PG&E customers can sign up for specific alerts for their area at this link.
The outages will last through the peak of the fire danger, and are a precaution to ensure that trees and brush to not come in contact with live wires, causing a spark that results in a vegetation fire that quickly grows into a major conflagration, given the high temperatures and winds predicted this weekend.
Once the conditions are past, and PG&E believes it safe to turn the power back on, they will first send out workers to walk and inspect all power lines to make sure that there are no downed trees or branches that could cause a fire upon re-electrification.
PG&E’s new policy comes in the wake of many thousands of acres burned, billions of dollars in damages and over 100 lives lost to fires causes by PG&E’s equipment in recently years.
Here is the tweet from Cal Fire:
A #RedFlagWarning has been issued for Saturday morning through Sunday afternoon bringing another round of #CriticalFireWeather. Gusty winds & low humidity can contribute to extreme fire behavior. Please use caution when outdoors. #OneLessSpark. https://t.co/UNM0xbDTKN pic.twitter.com/TzOIQzsrUP— CAL FIRE (@CAL_FIRE) June 7, 2019
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) today said it might be proactively turning power off for safety and conducting a Public Safety Power Shutoff in several Northern California counties within the next 18 to 36 hours. To help reduce the risk of wildfire and keep our customers, their families and their homes and businesses safe, the company may be turning off power in areas of the North Bay and the Sierra foothills where extreme fire risks exist.
PG&E is working directly with CAL FIRE, Cal OES, and other state and local agencies to help prepare for this potential safety event. This morning, the National Weather Service has issued Red Flag Warnings for the Central Valley and the North Bay Hills, starting either Friday evening or Saturday morning and lasting until Sunday afternoon.
“We know how much our customers rely on electric service and would only consider temporarily turning off power in the interest of safety during extreme weather conditions,” said Michael Lewis, PG&E’s senior vice president of Electric Operations.
Potential Timing and Locations
For the North Bay, there is the potential for a Public Safety Power Shutoff affecting several thousand customers starting around 6 a.m. on Saturday. The peak period of fire risk lasts until around 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Areas where power might be shut off:
Napa County: Portions of Napa, Lake Berryessa
Solano County: Portions of Suisun City, Vacaville, Winters
Yolo County: Portions of Davis, WintersFor the Sierra foothills, there is the potential for a Public Safety Power Shutoff affecting about 21,000 customers starting around 9 p.m. on Saturday with the peak period of fire risk lasting until 10 a.m. on Sunday.
PG&E
Areas where power might be shut off:
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.
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.
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.
Here is the press release from PG&E concerning the specific power shut offs:
PG&E announced Friday evening (June 7) 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.
PG&E
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