PG&E Cuts Power To Thousands In East Bay

EAST BAY —Nearly 24 hours after PG&E originally expected to begin a Public Safety Power Shutoff, or PSPS, the power was finally cut to tens of thousands of East Bay customers. Some communities have been hit hard, while others were not touched at all.

The second phase of PG&E's shutdown and de-energizing started around 10:15 p.m. Wednesday, PG&E officials said.

Some of the hardest hit communities are Oakland (13,365), Castro Valley (6,144), Berkeley (3,537 customers), Walnut Creek (2,643) and Pinole (2,372 customers), as of 1:30 a.m. Lamorinda and San Leandro were also hit hard.

The Fremont Police Department tweeted, "A very small area traversing Niles Canyon is affected by the planned power shutoff. Fortunately, the traffic signal at the intersection of Mission/Niles Canyon is still operational."

Piedmont reported that "the areas of Oakland Avenue, Hampton Road, Indian Road, and St. James Drive" were impacted.

Even homes and businesses with solar lost power. "When PG&E restores power, rooftop solar systems should re-engage automatically," PG&E officials said in a statement. "Solar systems cannot be powered off a generator as the two technologies do not work together. Customers who have a home battery system paired with their solar system may generally have up to two hours of backup power, depending on the size of their battery."

School Closures

The following schools will be closed on Thursday:

• UC Berkeley
• Pinole Valley High School, Pinole
• Ellerhorst Elementary School, Pinole,
• Madera Elementary School,El Cerrito
• Olinda Elementary School, Richmond
• Kensington Elementary School, Kensington
• Skyline High School, Oakland
• Fruitvale Elementary School, Oakland
• Grass Valley Elementary School, Oakland
• Montclair Elementary School, Oakland
• Sequoia Elementary School, Oakland
• Howard Elementary School, Oakland
• Elmhurst United Middle School, Oakland
• Rudsdale Continuation High School, Oakland
• Sojourner Truth Independent Study, Oakland

Health Care Services Closures

Alameda County announced that the following Health Care Services Agency locations are closed Thursday:

• Eastmont Town Center, 7200 Bancroft Ave, Oakland
• Creekside, 500 Davis Street, San Leandro
• Creekside, 1000 San Leandro Blvd, San Leandro
• Creekside, 1100 San Leandro Blvd, San Leandro

PG&E is expected to begin restoring power around noon, after first inspecting power lines to make sure that they are not damaged and are free of tree branches and other debris.

The shutdown was ordered because high winds were predicted, increasing the risk of wildfire.