Forecasted Offshore Dry Wind Event Means PG&E May Need to Proactively Turn Off Power for Safety in Targeted Portions of 24 Co...
October 13 2020 - 11:35PM
Business Wire
Customers Who Might Be Affected by the Public
Safety Power Shutoff Are Receiving One-Day Notifications
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) continues to monitor
a potentially strong and dry offshore wind event forecasted to
start Wednesday evening. Given the expected conditions, PG&E
began its one-day advance notifications to customers in areas where
PG&E may need to proactively turn power off for safety to
reduce the risk of wildfire from energized power lines.
Potential Public Safety Power Shutoff
Wednesday
The potential PSPS starting Wednesday evening could impact
approximately 54,000 customers in targeted portions of 24 counties
in the Northern Sierra Nevada foothills; the mid and higher
elevations in the Sierra generally north of Yosemite; the North Bay
mountains near Mt. St. Helena; small pockets in the East Bay near
Mt. Diablo; a pocket of the Oakland Hills east of Piedmont
(generally between highway 24 and Upper San Leandro Reservoir); the
elevated terrain east of Milpitas around the Calaveras Reservoir;
and portions of the Santa Cruz and Big Sur mountains.
Specifically, customers in portions of the following counties
are being notified: Alameda, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Contra
Costa, El Dorado, Humboldt, Lake, Monterey, Napa, Nevada, Placer,
Plumas, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Shasta, Sierra, Solano,
Sonoma, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo and Yuba. A small number of customers
in two tribal communities also may be affected.
The potential PSPS event is still over 24 hours away. PG&E’s
in-house meteorologists, as well as its Wildfire Safety Operation
Center (WSOC) and Emergency Operations Center (EOC) will continue
to monitor conditions closely, and additional customer
notifications will be issued as we move closer to the potential
event.
Customer notifications—via text, email and automated phone
call—began late Monday afternoon, approximately two days prior to
the potential shutoff. 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. A
primary focus will be given to customers who rely on electricity
for critical life-sustaining equipment.
Potentially Impacted Counties
The potential shutoff will only affect about 1% of the 5.4
million customers within PG&E’s service territory. For the Bay
Area, we are forecasting an even smaller impact of less than 0.5%.
Due to our improvements to the PSPS program and infrastructure over
the course of 2020 – such as improved meteorology forecasting and
guidance tools, sectionalizing and temporary generation to energize
microgrids, substations and critical facilities – we were able to
make this upcoming PSPS event significantly smaller in size.
We estimate that approximately 54,000 customers in the following
24 counties will be affected:
- Alameda County: 5,405 customers, 214 Medical Baseline
customers
- Amador County: 57 customers, 0 Medical Baseline
customers
- Butte County: 11,315 customers, 982 Medical Baseline
customers
- Calaveras County: 262 customers, 17 Medical Baseline
customers
- Contra Costa County: 929 customers, 61 Medical Baseline
customers
- El Dorado County: 1,654 customers, 73 Medical Baseline
customers
- Humboldt County: 187 customers, 1 Medical Baseline
customer
- Lake County: 82 customers, 5 Medical Baseline
customers
- Monterey County: 1,084 customers, 20 Medical Baseline
customers
- Napa County: 9,230 customers, 315 Medical Baseline
customers
- Nevada County: 224 customers, 6 Medical Baseline
customers
- Placer County: 389 customers, 13 Medical Baseline
customers
- Plumas County: 1,855 customers, 103 Medical Baseline
customers
- San Mateo County: 1,683 customers, 56 Medical Baseline
customers
- Santa Clara County: 2,210 customers, 103 Medical
Baseline customers
- Santa Cruz County: 6,024 customers, 406 Medical Baseline
customers
- Shasta County: 4,697 customers, 396 Medical Baseline
customers
- Sierra County: 1,052 customers, 24 Medical Baseline
customers
- Solano County: 871 customers, 66 Medical Baseline
customers
- Sonoma County: 1,781 customers, 65 Medical Baseline
customers
- Tehama County: 1,230 customers, 58 Medical Baseline
customers
- Trinity County: 178 customers, 10 Medical Baseline
customers
- Yolo County: 10 customers, 0 Medical Baseline
customers
- Yuba County: 1,841 customers, 141 Medical Baseline
customers
- Total: 54,252 customers, 3,135 Medical Baseline
customers
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.
Public Safety Power Shutoffs: What PG&E
Customers Should Know
Community Resource Centers Reflect
COVID-Safety Protocols
PG&E will open Community Resource Centers (CRC) to support
our customers affected by the PSPS. While a PSPS is an important
safety tool to reduce the risk of major wildfires during severe
weather, PG&E understands that losing power disrupts lives,
especially for customers sheltering-at-home in response to
COVID-19. These temporary CRCs will be open to customers when power
is out at their homes and will provide ADA-accessible restrooms and
hand-washing stations; medical-equipment charging; Wi-Fi; bottled
water; and non-perishable snacks.
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
format will depend on a number of factors, including input from
local and tribal leaders. Supplies also will be handed out in
grab-and-go bags at all CRCs so most customers can be on their way
quickly. More information regarding CRC locations and resources can
be found by visiting www.pge.com/pspsupdates.
Here’s Where to Go to Learn
More
- PG&E’s emergency website (www.pge.com/pspsupdates) is now
available in seven 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.
- Customers are encouraged to update their contact information
and indicate their preferred language for notifications by visiting
www.pge.com/mywildfirealerts or by calling 1-800-742-5000, where
in-language support is available.
- 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 www.pge.com/pspszipcodealerts.
- PG&E has launched a new tool at its online Safety Action
Center (www.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. This includes phone numbers, escape routes and a
family meeting location if an evacuation is necessary.
- PG&E is airing its 30-minute TV program, “Preparing for
Public Safety Power Shutoffs” program on Wednesday, October 14 in
the Bay Area market on KRON4 from 12:30 to 1:00 p.m. and KOFY
(Channel 20): 8:00 to 8:30 a.m.
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
pge.com and pge.com/news.
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