UPDATE: Reduced Offshore Winds Lead PG&E to Cancel PSPS Outages
NAPA COUNTY (CBS SF) -- Weaker offshore winds on Thursday have led Pacific Gas and Electric officials to cancel a possible Public Safety Power Shutoff event for most customers who would have been impacted in the North Bay, according to the utility.
After offshore winds trended weaker Thursday morning, officials said the already decreased scope of the PSPS event that would have affected about 5,500 customers who were previously notified about the potential PSPS in 10 counties led PG&E to notify those customers of the cancelation.
On Wednesday, PG&E had estimated 16,000 customers in portions of 12 counties could be impacted by potential outages beginning early Thursday morning.
The customers who were notified reside in Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Lake, Napa, Shasta, Solano, Sonoma, Tehama, and Yolo counties.
The PG&E outage map on the utility's website is currently showing no PSPS outages.
However, officials noted that increased winds in the Southern region of PG&E's service area could potentially prompt a PSPS impacting about 670 customers in Kern County. Those customers have been notified that potential shutoffs could begin Thursday night around midnight.
A release issued by the utility noted that customers no longer being considered for a PSPS Thursday should stay aware that unexpected outages are still possible for other reasons, including debris or wildlife coming into contact with powerlines. In the case of such incidents, PG&E crews will work to safely restore power as quickly as possible once it has been determined the system is safe to re-energize.
More information about the planned power shutoffs can be found online at pge.com/pspsupdates.
