PG&E outage wiped out power to swath of East Bay

Power outages still remain for at least 8,500 residents throughout Alameda County, mainly in Oakland and San Leandro, officials said.

The outage first occurred Sunday afternoon after a fire broke out at a PG&E substation Sunday in the 5000 block of Coliseum Way.

The massive disruption also brought Oakland International Airport to a standstill on Sunday afternoon. At its peak, there were 50,000 PG&E customers without electricity due to the power failure.

Travelers said during that time no one was being let through security because of the outage.

The outage forced BART to suspend service to the airport temporarily. Service has since been restored.

Power was restored at the airport around 2:30 p.m. 

Some businesses, including gas stations, were forced to shut down.

In a statement to KTVU, PG&E said the cause of the outage is a transformer fire. 

"We are working closely with fire officials to make the situation safe," JD Guidi, of PG&E wrote. "The safety of our customers and employees is our most important responsibility."

PG&E had said power for the remaining residents will most likely return early Monday, around 2:30 a.m.

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