Downed trees, power outages reported across Bay Area as new storm slams region

PG&E crews continued to scramble Tuesday evening to restore power to nearly 260,000 customers around the Bay Area, officials said in the latest update on regional outages at 6 p.m.

That number is down about 40,000 customers from 4:30 p.m. 

The South Bay is still reporting the most outages, with 128,363 without power.

In the East Bay 68,196 are affected; 53,958 on the Peninsula; 7,000 in the North Bay and 787 in San Francisco, according to PG&E spokesperson Megan McFarland. 

The reason for the escalating outages is rain, accompanied by intense gusts that have led to downed trees and wires in every part of the Bay Area.  

Winds of 74 mph have been clocked at San Francisco International Airport; 97 mph at  Mount Umunhum in the Santa Cruz Mountains; 93 mph along Mines Road in the East Bay; and 71 mph in the Las Trampas and Oakland hills, McFarland said.

"Elsewhere, widespread gusts 45-55 mph have been reported and will continue with isolated gusts 65+ mph possible through the Sacramento and northern San Joaquin Valleys, as well as along the Sierra foothills and over elevated terrain," McFarland said.

PG&E has outage information including an interactive map available on its website.

Customers can report downed power lines immediately by calling 911 and by calling PG&E at 1-800-743-5002.  

More than a dozen seniors were evacuated from an assisted living center in Corralitos, Santa Cruz County, after a tree fell on the building.

RICHMOND -- An injury collision involving a tractor trailer that was apparently blown over by high winds on eastbound I-580 on the Richmond San Rafael Bridge shut down the span in that direction for hours. 

The crash was first reported at around noon and involved a tractor trailer that overturned on the bridge. Initially, just the left and center lanes were blocked.

The Marin office of the CHP issued a wind advisory at around 2 p.m. prohibiting all high-profile vehicles allowed on the bridges at this time.

At around 2:15 p.m., all eastbound traffic on the span was halted. Traffic is being diverted to southbound US-101 and Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. Motorists are advised to expect delays and to use alternate routes to avoid the area. 

CHP and Caltrans officials had to line up a string of tow trucks across from the truck to provide a wind break as crews put the truck upright. The vehicle was removed and all eastbound lanes reopened at about 5:30 p.m.  

Both BART and Caltrain were reporting major delays Tuesday because of the effects of the high winds across the Bay Area.

Late Tuesday afternoon, the BART Yellow Line was single-tracking between Concord and Pleasant Hill after a large tree fell across the rails onto a train. No one was hurt.

Earlier Tuesday afternoon, service on the Red Line was suspended between Richmond and North Berkeley in both directions due to a power outage.  BART had already been experiencing delays Tuesday morning of at least 20 minutes because of the rain from the latest atmospheric river storm. 

At 2:25 p.m. BART reported major delays because of the high winds blowing trees and branches onto tracks, including a down tree at the Richmond Station platform.

San Francisco passengers on the Richmond line were advised to board the Berryessa train and transfer at MacArthur station.  

There was also a major delay on the Antioch line in both the Antioch and SFO directions due to an obstruction on the track, though BART did not offer any details as to where that obstruction was located. 

Meanwhile, on the Peninsula, Caltrain said as of 2 p.m. that they were dealing with at least 16 downed trees and branches along the system.

In an update on their website, Caltrain said four trees were down near Burlingame station, causing delays in both directions. While crews work to clear the trees, SamTrans is offering limited bus service between the Millbrae Transit Center and the Hayward Park station in San Mateo.

Tuesday afternoon's high winds were downing trees and knocking down power lines all over the Bay Area, including Highway 92, which was closed near Half Moon Bay.

Nearly 275,000 PG&E customers in the Bay Area were without power Tuesday afternoon, most of them in the South Bay and East Bay.

At least 5,000 customers are without power in Walnut Creek, due to high winds blowing down trees and power lines in Central Contra Costa County. Most of the damage was around Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill. 

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SAN FRANCISCO INT'L AIRPORT -- Flights at San Francisco International Airport resumed Tuesday afternoon, after strong winds prompted a ground stop.

"Strong winds at SFO causing delays. Currently on a ground stop with airplanes waiting at gates and on the tarmac," the airport tweeted shortly before 1:45 p.m.

Around 2:05 p.m., the airport said the ground stop had ended, but SFO was on a ground delay program. Travelers were urged to check with their airline for flight status.

No weather-related delays have been announced at Oakland International Airport or San Jose Mineta International Airport.

PAJARO, Monterey County -- With flood waters still rising in Monterey County, a new, powerful storm front fueled by moisture from the Hawaiian Islands bore down on the region.

The atmospheric river began pummeling the region beginning late Monday night. A low-pressure system spinning northeast of the Bay Area will intensify the storm's rain and winds.

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Among the reports of trees down Tuesday were incidents in San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, and Santa Cruz County.

The latest in a relentless parade of 11 atmospheric rivers has left behind flooding, landslides, treacherous highways, toppled trees and widespread power outages.

Tuesday's downpours elevated the San Lorenzo River to flooding level in community of Felton nestled in the Santa Cruz Mountains, waterway to the minor flooding level at 16.9 feet by 1 p.m.   

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