PG&E Begins to Proactively Turn Off Power for Safety to Nearly 800,000 Customers Across Northern and Central California

San Francisco, CA…Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) confirmed that it has implemented the first phase of a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) across significant portions of its service area in response to a widespread, severe wind event.

The Public Safety Power Shutoff will occur in three phases, with the first phase impacting approximately 513,000 customers beginning at 12 a.m. Wednesday morning. Customer impacts will include: Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Solano, Sonoma, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo and Yuba.

The second phase of the Public Safety Power Shutoff will occur around 12:00pm on Wednesday afternoon, impacting service to approximately 234,000 customers in the following counties: Alameda, Alpine, Contra Costa, Mariposa, San Joaquin, San Mateo and Santa Clara.

A third phase is being considered for the southernmost portions of PG&E’s service area, impacting approximately 42,000 customers. Specific locations are still to be determined.

The decision to turn off power was based on forecasts of dry, hot and windy weather including potential fire risk. Based on the latest weather forecasts and models, PG&E anticipates that this weather event will last through midday Thursday, with peak winds forecasted from Wednesday morning through Thursday morning and reaching 60 to 70 mph at higher elevations.

“The safety of our customers and the communities we serve is our most important responsibility, which is why PG&E has decided to turn power off to customers during this widespread, severe wind event. We understand the effects this event will have on our customers and appreciate the public’s patience as we do what is necessary to keep our communities safe and reduce the risk of wildfire,” said Michael Lewis, PG&E’s senior vice president of Electric Operations.

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 PSPS.
  • 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 contacts.
  • Build or restock your emergency kit with flashlights, fresh batteries, first aid supplies and cash.
  • Keep in mind elderly family members, younger children and pets. Information and tips including a safety plan checklist are available at pge.com/psps.
  • Continue to monitor PG&E’s new weather forecasting web page at pge.com/weather which is a dedicated page with weather forecasting information and a daily 7-day PSPS lookahead.

 

To support customers in the affected areas, PG&E has opened Community Resource Centers in several locations beginning on Wednesday morning. The centers are located at:

County City Location
Butte Oroville Bird Street School, 1421 Bird St, Oroville 95965
Butte Magalia 14144 Lakeridge Court, Magalia 95954
El Dorado Placerville El Dorado Fairgrounds 100 Placerville Drive, Placerville 95667
Lake Clear Lake Clearlake Senior Center 3245 Bowers Avenue, Clearlake 95422
Napa Napa 1001 Fairgrounds Drive, Vallejo 94589 or Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Parking Lot – 1001 Fairgrounds Drive, Vallejo CA 94589
Napa Calistoga Calistoga Fairgrounds – 1601 N. Oak Calistoga 94515
Santa Clara San Jose Avaya Stadium 1123 Coleman Avenue, San Jose 95110
Nevada Grass Valley Sierra College Grass Valley 250 Sierra College Drive, Grass Valley 95945
Contra Costa San Ramon Bishop Ranch Parking Lot – 2600 Camino Ramon, San Ramon 94583
Calaveras Arnold Meadowmont Shopping Center – 2182 HWY 4, Arnold 95223
San Mateo Half Moon Bay Pasta Moon Restaurant, 845 Main St Half Moon Bay 94019
Placer Auburn Gold Country Fairgrounds 1273 High Street Auburn 95603
Shasta, Tehama Redding, Cottonwood, Red Bluff Shasta College, 11555 Old Oregon Trail Redding 96003
Solano Vacaville Mission Church 6391 Leisure Town Road, Vacaville 95687
Sonoma Santa Rosa, Sonoma Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building 1351 Maple Ave, Santa Rosa 95404
Alameda Oakland Merritt College LOT B – Leona St., Oakland 94508
Tuolumne Sonora Mother Lode Fairgrounds 220 Southgate Drive, Sonora 95370
Santa Cruz Aptos Twin Lakes Church 2701 Cabrillo College Dr, Aptos 95003
Amador Pioneer Mace Meadows Golf Course, 26570 Fairway Drive Pioneer 95666
Mendocino Ukiah 1775 N. State Street, Ukiah 95482
Yolo Winters Next to PG&E Gas Academy – Intersection of E. Grant Avenue & Timber Crest Road, Winters 95694
Colusa, Glenn Williams, Orland 839 Newville Road, Orland 95963
Mariposa Coulterville Coulterville Fire Dept – 10293 Ferry Road, Coulterville 95311
Sierra Sierra City Loganville Campground parking lot – HWY 49, Sierra City 96125
Stanislaus Westley Westley Hotel – 8615 CA-33, Westley 95387
Plumas La Porte 2140 Main St. La Porte 95981
El Dorado El Dorado Hills Rolling Hills Christian Church 800 White Rock Road, El Dorado Hills 95762
Yuba Oregon House 9185 Marysville Road, Oregon House 95962

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.