Due to Severe Weather and Wind, PG&E Will Turn Off Power for Safety to Approximately 37,000 Customers in Targeted Parts of 15 Counties

Rhea-AI Summary

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) initiated a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) due to high winds and dry conditions, impacting approximately 37,000 customers across 15 counties. Counties removed from the scope include Lassen, Solano, Stanislaus, and Yuba. Notifications began 48 hours prior to the shutoff, with de-energization starting at 8 p.m. PG&E will open 21 Community Resource Centers to assist affected customers during this event. The shutoff aligns with National Weather Service Red Flag Warnings indicating critical fire weather conditions.

Positive

• Reduced impact: Number of affected customers decreased by 31% due to weather changes.
• Support measures: Opening of 21 Community Resource Centers to assist customers.

Negative

• Risk of safety shutoffs: Ongoing need for PSPS indicates persistent wildfire risks.

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) will de-energize certain electrical lines for safety over the course of this evening (Wednesday, Oct. 21) as part of a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS). PG&E is calling a PSPS due to a high-wind event combined with low humidity and severely dry vegetation, that together create high risk of catastrophic wildfires.

Due changes in the weather forecast, the number of customers expected to be impacted has decreased by 31 percent. The PSPS event will affect approximately 37,000 customers in targeted portions of 15 counties.

• Counties removed from scope include: Lassen, Solano, Stanislaus and Yuba counties.
• Counties remaining in scope include: Alameda, Butte, Colusa, Contra Costa, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Napa, Plumas, Santa Clara, Shasta, Sonoma, Tehama, Trinity, and Yolo Counties.

Customers Notified of Decision to Shut Off Power Wednesday afternoon

Customer notifications began 48 hours in advance of the shutoff and PG&E continues to update affected customers. Customers were notified this afternoon that the PSPS event would occur and customers who were removed from the scope were notified of cancellation. Lines will be de-energized starting at approximately 8 p.m. tonight and the de-energization process will continue throughout the evening, depending upon location, across the Sacramento Valley, Northern Sierra, and elevated terrain of the North and East Bay. All of these areas are covered by National Weather Service Red Flag Warnings, indicating critical fire weather conditions.

To support our customers during this PSPS, PG&E will open 21 Community Resource Centers (CRCs). For customers with power turning off this evening, CRCs will be open from 7 p.m. today (Wednesday, Oct. 21) until 10 p.m. All CRCs will operate from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. through the event. These temporary CRCs will be open to customers when power is out at their homes and will provide ADA-accessible restrooms, hand-washing stations, medical-equipment charging, WiFi; bottled water, grab-and-go bags and non-perishable snacks.

Timeline for safety shutoffs

The de-energization will begin around 8 p.m. Shutoffs will continue throughout the evening, ultimately affecting a total of about 37,000 customers in portions of Alameda, Butte, Colusa, Contra Costa, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Napa, Plumas, Santa Clara, Shasta, Sonoma, Tehama, Trinity, and Yolo Counties.

Customer notifications—via text, email and automated phone call—began Monday afternoon (Oct. 19), approximately two days prior to the potential shutoff. Additional notifications one day prior to the event took place Tuesday, Oct. 20. 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 with a knock on their door when possible with a focus on customers who rely on electricity for critical life-sustaining equipment.

Once the weather subsides on Friday morning and it’s safe to do so, PG&E will patrol the de-energized lines to determine if they were damaged during the wind event and repair any damage found. PG&E will then safely restore power in stages and as quickly as possible, with the goal of restoring power to nearly all customers within 12 daylight hours after severe weather has passed.

Affected Counties and Customers

• Alameda County: 336 customers, 16 Medical Baseline customers
• Butte County: 10,259 customers, 922 Medical Baseline customers
• Colusa County: 4 customers, 0 Medical Baseline customers
• Contra Costa County: 201 customers, 10 Medical Baseline customers
• Glenn County: 162 customers, 7 Medical Baseline customers
• Humboldt County: 288 customers, 5 Medical Baseline customers
• Lake County: 127 customers, 6 Medical Baseline customers
• Napa County: 3,296 customers, 120 Medical Baseline customers
• Plumas County: 434 customers, 8 Medical Baseline customers
• Santa Clara County: 236 customers, 9 Medical Baseline customers
• Shasta County: 18,480 customers, 1,464 Medical Baseline customers
• Sonoma County: 135 customers, 5 Medical Baseline customers
• Tehama County: 2,511 customers, 189 Medical Baseline customers
• Trinity County: 395 customers, 21 Medical Baseline customers
• Yolo County: 10 customers, 0 Medical Baseline customers
• Total*: 36,874 customers, 2,782 Medical Baseline customers

*The following Tribal Communities located within these counties will be impacted by this event:

• Grindstone Rancheria Tribal community
• Pit River Tribal community – Montgomery Creek Rancheria, Roaring Creek Rancheria

Customers can look up their address online to find out if their location is being monitored for the potential safety shutoff at www.pge.com/pspsupdates.

Community Resource Centers Reflect COVID-Safety Protocols

While a PSPS is an important safety tool to reduce wildfire risk during severe fire risk weather, PG&E understands that losing power disrupts lives.

PG&E’s temporary CRCs will provide ADA-accessible restrooms, hand-washing stations; medical-equipment charging; WiFi; bottled water; grab-and-go bags and non-perishable snacks. The 21 CRCs, located throughout PG&E’s service area in locations affected by the PSPS, will remain open throughout the event.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, all CRCs will follow important health and safety protocols including:

• Facial coverings and maintaining a physical distance of at least six feet from those who are not part of the same household will be required at all CRCs.
• Temperature checks will be administered before entering CRCs that are located indoors.
• CRC staff will be trained in COVID-19 precautions and will regularly sanitize surfaces and use Plexiglass barriers at check-in.
• All CRCs will follow county and state requirements regarding COVID-19, including limits on the number of customers permitted indoors at any time.

Besides these health protocols, customers visiting a CRC in 2020 will experience further changes, including a different look and feel. In addition to using existing indoor facilities, PG&E is planning to open CRCs at outdoor, open-air sites in some locations and use large commercial vans as CRCs in other locations. CRC locations will depend on a number of factors, including input from local and tribal leaders. Outdoor CRCs will provide grab-and-go supply bags so most customers can be on their way quickly.

PG&E updates its CRC locations regularly. Click here for updates.

Here’s Where to Go to Learn More

• PG&E’s emergency website pge.com/pspsupdates is now available in 13 languages. Currently, the website is available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Russian, Vietnamese, Korean, Farsi, Arabic, Hmong, Khmer, Punjabi and Japanese. Customers will have the opportunity to choose their language of preference for viewing the information when visiting the website.
• For additional language support services including how to set language preference, select options for obtaining translated notifications, and receive other translated resources on PSPS, customers can visit pge.com/pspslanguagehelp. This website is available in 11 languages including English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Russian, Vietnamese, Korean, Hmong, Khmer, Punjabi and Japanese. Customers who need in-language support over the phone can contact us by calling 1-833-208-4167.
• Customers are encouraged to update their contact information and indicate their preferred language for notifications by visiting pge.com/mywildfirealerts or by calling 1-800-743-5000.
• Tenants and non-account holders can sign up to receive PSPS ZIP Code Alerts for any area where you do not have a PG&E account by visiting pge.com/pspszipcodealerts.
• PG&E has launched a new tool at its online Safety Action Center safetyactioncenter.pge.com to help customers prepare. By using the "Make Your Own Emergency Plan" tool and answering a few short questions, visitors to the website can compile and organize the important information needed for a personalized family emergency plan.

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 23,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation's cleanest energy to 16 million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news.