California enters uncharted territory: Massive blackouts, historically dangerous wind, nearly 200,000 people evacuated – “This is definitely an event that we’re calling historic and extreme”
By Phil Willon, Joe Mozingo, Rong-Gong Lin II, and Maura Dolan
26 October 2019
SAN FRANCISCO (Los Angeles Times) – Northern California braced for a weekend in uncharted territory as Pacific Gas & Electric prepared to shut off power to more than 2 million people as the region faced one of the worst periods of fire weather in a generation.
It’s a perilous combination that left many anxiously planning for blackouts and the potential for more destructive wildfires, fueled by 36 hours of intense winds. Some fear they will have to confront fires without power, an experience those who fled this week’s Sonoma County fire described as terrifying.
The Diablo winds are expected to pick up Saturday evening and last until Monday morning, longer than the windstorms that fueled the three most catastrophic fires in California history.
“This is definitely an event that we’re calling historic and extreme,” said David King, meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s Monterey office, which manages forecasts for the Bay Area. “What’s making this event really substantial and historic is the amount of time that these winds are going to remain.”
PG&E warned the power outages could be spread across 36 counties from Humboldt to Santa Cruz to Bakersfield.
Residents are scrambling to prepare. Dr. Jeff Klingman, whose daughter is getting married in the Berkeley hills Saturday, plans to haul a generator to the wedding venue in case the power goes out.
The generator won’t light up the room but could provide power for the DJ.
“We don’t quite know what is going to happen,” he said. “Everyone is keeping their fingers crossed.” [more]
California enters uncharted territory: Massive blackouts, historically dangerous wind
A race against time to slow Sonoma fire before monster winds return
By Phil Willon, Alejandra Reyes-Velarde, Anita Chabria, and Taryn Luna
26 October 2019
(Los Angeles Times) – As firefighters here battled a fire dancing through the hills of Sonoma County wine country, they knew they were in a fight against time.
On Friday, the powerful winds that had fueled the fire slowed, offering time for crews to gain some ground. But by Saturday night, the conditions will turn grim and dangerous.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw gusts between 80 and 85 mph,” National Weather Service meteorologist Drew Peterson said. “Hopefully, they can make some progress. We’ll most likely see the fire spreading once again.”
The Kincade fire has burned 21,900 acres in northern Sonoma County and was only 5% contained as of Friday afternoon. The entire town of Geyserville and vineyards in the region were ordered to evacuate, though some stayed, using generators for power. Fire officials said 49 structures, including 21 homes, were destroyed, and the Geysers geothermal facilities run by Calpine Corp. reported some damage.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state secured $75 million for areas affected by power shut-offs. Half would be allocated to local governments, with the cities of Los Angeles, San Jose, San Diego and Oakland receiving $500,000 each. The money can be used to purchase equipment for planned shut-offs, such as generators, fuel storage and other backup energy sources.
This week, the state provided additional resources to assist Pacific Gas & Electric Co. in investigating power lines and turning the power back on more quickly, including for aircraft and infrared technology, Newsom said.
On Sunday, conditions are likely to worsen. The winds are expected to head down slope, reaching urban areas as far as Oakland, San Francisco and Sacramento. These winds are what brought devastation to rural communities in the foothills of the North Bay hills when fires struck in 2017. The Tubbs fire in Sonoma and Napa counties killed 22 people and destroyed more than 5,000 homes. [more]
A race against time to slow Sonoma fire before monster winds return
California fire updates: sweeping evacuations and blackouts ordered
By Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs and Neil Vigdor
27 October 2019
(The New York Times) – Some 180,000 people are now under mandatory evacuation orders, and more than 2 million are expected to lose power.
Emergency responders greatly expanded a mandatory evacuation zone on Sunday morning, more than doubling the number of residents who have been told to flee the Kincade fire north of San Francisco.
Firefighters have been struggling to contain the blaze, driven by winds of up to 80 miles an hour and fed by dry conditions. The expanded evacuation zone now covers about 180,000 people, the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office said.
“This is the largest evacuation that any of us at the Sheriff’s Office can remember,” the office wrote on Twitter. All residents who had previously been under an evacuation warning have now been ordered to flee.
About 90 to 95 percent of people in the mandatory evacuation zones are fleeing, said Sgt. Spencer Crum of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office. He said deputies would not force people out of their homes or arrest them if they refused to follow the order, but that “they will be on their own in the event of an emergency.”
Public safety officials pleaded with residents to comply, recalling a 2017 fire that wrought devastation in the area.
“I’m seeing people reporting that they’re going to stay and fight this fire,” Mark Essick, Sonoma County’s sheriff, said during a news conference Saturday night. “Fire is not something you can stay and fight.” [more]
California Fire Updates: Sweeping Evacuations and Blackouts Ordered
