A planned shutdown of electricity throughout the Bay Area and Northern California by PG&E now has more than 20,000 customers in its reach, as well as five polling locations, the utility said.
The public safety power shutdown is expected amid increasingly stronger offshore winds that have generated a red flag warning for severe fire danger throughout the region from 11 a.m. Tuesday until 7 a.m. Thursday. Winds are likely to blow regularly between 25-35 mph and could gust as high as 50 mph in higher elevations.
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They’re forecast to be the strongest in the North Bay Mountains, according to the National Weather Service. Winds there are expected to gust up to 60 mph below 2,500 feet and in excess of 70 mph above that elevation. The weather service issued a wind advisory beginning at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
“The strongest winds we anticipate will be Tuesday night into Wednesday morning,” NWS meteorologist Dial Hoang said. “That obviously will contribute to the fire danger.”
PG&E said fire danger is the biggest reason for its decision to issue the shutdown. The offshore winds are expected to dry out much of the moisture received from rain a week ago, and the weather service said the relative humidity figures are expected to be no higher than 15%.
The utility originally said the shutdown would affect 15,000 customers in and tree tribal areas over 17 California counties. Late Monday, they upped the numbers to 20,000 customers and four tribal areas. The majority of the customers are in the higher elevations of the East Bay, the North Bay, and the Sacramento Valley.
The power shutdown is expected to include Lakeside Elementary School on Black Road in Los Gatos, a polling location for Tuesday’s election. PG&E said power to that location as well as four other polling locations, won’t be cut off until after the polls’ scheduled closing time of 8 p.m.
The other polls that are in the scope to be closed include three in Solano County — the Moose Lodge on Canyon Road and Orchard School on North Orchard Avenue in Vacaville, and the Girl Scout House on Hillridge Drive in Fairfield — and the Calpine Geothermal Visitor Center on Central Park Road in Middletown of Lake County.
The utility said none of the state’s tabulation centers are located where a shutdown may occur. They said customers in line to be have their power cut have started receiving notifications by email, text or phone call and urged anyone with questions to check a link to the shutdowns on their web site.