Update: Power restored to remaining Oakland customers after extended outage

OAKLAND -- PG&E on Monday afternoon restored power to the remaining 8,500 customers impacted by a massive outage darkened homes and businesses across a wide swath of Oakland Sunday.

PG&E released a statement saying that the rest of the customers who were impacted by the outage had their electricity restored between 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. 

"We thank our customers for their patience as our crews worked around the clock to safely restore the power," the statement read. "We will conduct a thorough investigation on the cause of this outage."

At 1 p.m., firefighters were called to a PG&E substation near 50th Avenue and Coliseum Way after crews noticed gray and brown smoke coming from inside the yard.

Firefighters said they noticed a transformer actively burning in the yard. The fire had been extinguished as of 2:30 p.m.

The fire caused power outages in Oakland and  Alameda where it disrupted traffic access to the island via its drawbridges. The Posey and Webster tubes were the only ways to enter and exit Alameda for much of the afternoon. 

Alameda Municipal Power officials said the issue was with a PG&E transmission line. Alameda Municipal Power tweeted that PG&E had restored service to the island around 5:30 p.m. 

The Oakland International Airport, which serves about 170 flights a day, lost power for nearly two hours, spokesman Robert Bernardo said.

"I got here and it was just so congested, the line was just out the door, people were just lined up," traveler Geraldine Hall told KPIX. "The kiosk wasn't working so no one could get their tickets to put their ticket on their baggage or get their boarding card, everyone was just like waiting, we were waiting and the conveyer belt wasn't working."

Service was also disrupted on BART Oakland airport connector trains. The trains were replaced by shuttles during the disruption.

Airport officials said power was restored by 2:50 p.m. Some flights were delayed but there were no cancellations during the outage, Bernardo said.

Approximately 54,000 customers in Oakland and Alameda were affected at the height of the outage, according to PG&E.

Among then were East Oakland residents Zoe and Tertusha, who cancelled brunch plans. They went to one of the few local stores that remained opened.

"We don't have power and we're hungry, but it's my friends birthday so I just got her some roses instead," Zoe said.

As she stood on the dark, Zoe was struck at how surreal it all was.

"I don't know what's going on but it's creepy,"  she said. "I don't know what's out there."

PG&E issued a statement shortly after 10 p.m. saying power had been restored to all but about 8,500 customers who, the utility warned, would likely remain in the dark overnight. 

WEBLINK: PG&E Interactive Outage Map