Public Safety Power Shutoff: North Bay Businesses, Schools Residents Spend 24 Hours In The Dark
SANTA ROSA (KPIX) - Some North Bay communities are in the dark, waiting for the fire danger to subside. The wind remained fairly calm overnight but it's expected to be a different story going into Wednesday morning.
Most of the customers in the Rincon area lost power in the middle of the night and by evening, for some, the lights have yet to come on.
Nicky Murphy, a Santa Rosa resident says, "I think it was about 3 o'clock this morning. I heard the lights go off and that was it, no power."
Murphy and her family have been without power now for nearly 24 hours. She added, "I had one bar on my cell phone and no power so it was a day of work virtually lost and it's very frustrating."
Most of the schools in the area also closed for the day with many of the students unable to zoom.
At Pawsarotti's, a pet store off the Sonoma highway, it definitely was not business as usual. Manager Issac Aronen says business was down roughly 80%.
"I had ten customers all day because nobody thinks we're open since the power is out and it's an every year situation," said Aronen.
Meanwhile, a blanket of smoky air sits on top of many areas of the Bay Area, from San Jose to the North Bay. For those living in Eastern Santa Rosa, they have somewhat gotten use to this yearly ritual but 2020 has tested their patience.