Power shutoffs expected in Bay Area on Election Day
OAKLAND, Calif. - Six Bay Area counties are facing possible power shutoffs on Election Day and the following days, PG&E reported Sunday.
PG&E said the power shutoffs are likely due to high winds and dry conditions forecast in these areas. The power shutoffs are expected Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa, Sonoma, Solano, and Santa Clara Counties.
Other counties possibly impacted in Northern California include:
- Butte
- Lake
- Plumas
- Santa Cruz
- Stanislaus
- Yolo
PG&E said around 15,000 people could be impacted within 17 counties and three tribal areas.
Santa Clara County's Office of the Registrar told KTVU that they do have backup generators to prevent loss of power, but are also reaching out to PG&E for more information.
Sonoma County said they are working with their emergency management department to monitor the situation. According to officials, none of the voting centers in their county are expected to be affected by the shutoffs.
The Santa Cruz County's Registrar of Voters Office said they are coordinating with PG&E, who know where their voting locations are, and are in regular contact with them for status updates.
Officials said many polling places have emergency generators, and in places they don't, they will have backups available.
"Each election we develop an emergency services plan, so we already had things in place in case of a power disruption," a spokesperson for the office said.
Solano County registrar's office said they are prepared and have multiple layers of contingencies in place.
PG&E officials said they have been "taking proactive measures to ensure the reliability of service to key election facilities."
"Although there are 7,000 Election Day polling locations in PG&E's service area and 48 tabulation centers, just one polling location—Calpine Geothermal Visitor Center in Lake County—has so far been identified as in scope for the potential PSPS. The earliest that polling location could be impacted is Tuesday, November 5, at 9:30 p.m., which is after in-person voting has ended. PG&E is working to ensure backup generation is available at the Calpine Geothermal Visitor Center out of an abundance of caution. No tabulation centers are currently in the scope of the PSPS. To prepare for any non-PSPS related power outages, we have staged extra crews and emergency materials throughout our service area. All vote tabulation centers have their own backup generation already in place," PG&E said in a statement to KTVU.
PG&E said these shutoffs occur when extreme weather and other conditions on the ground bring an increased risk of wildfires.
Those conditions include low humidity, high winds, dry material on the ground, vegetation near powerlines, red flag warnings from the National Weather Service, and real-time observations from weather experts and ground crews, PG&E said.
Residents can check specifics for their address and resources here.
Featured
Stronger winds boosting Bay Area fire danger
Last Friday’s system had a winter flavor with steady downpours in parts of the Bay Area and a fresh blanket of Sierra snow. We might not be on a straight track toward winter just yet. A couple of wind events will dry out Northern California and increase the fire danger.