PG&E announced plans on Saturday to turn off the lights in 940,000 homes and businesses throughout 36 counties in Northern California for 48 hours or more, in an attempt to prevent more wildfires.
Driving the news: Parts of the Bay Area, wine country and the Sierra foothills face a potentially “historic” wind event, with gusts between 60 and 80 mph, as well as low humidity forecast to sweep across the state. The National Weather Service has indicated the wind could bring the most dangerous wildfire conditions since the 2017 wine country fires, which destroyed much of the city of Santa Rosa, and killed 22 people.
What they're saying: "This wind event is forecast to be the most serious weather situation that Northern and Central California has experienced in recent memory," said Michael Lewis, PG&E's senior vice president of Electric Operations.
- PG&E's process is expected to occur in stages, effecting nearly 90,000 more customers than originally estimated.
- Officials have issued new evacuation orders, bringing the total on Saturday to about 50,000.
Background: PG&E, the largest utility in the state, has turned off the electricity twice in recent week, aiming to prevent wildfires during high-wind periods and dry spells.
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