Energy conservation requested after fallen transmission tower, storm

October 13, 7:13 PMSF Family ExaminerTeri Stoddard

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Tree branch down in Concord - image by t.stoddard

The "worst October storm in 47 years" is packing a punch in the Bay Area.  From two adults and an infant being evacuated from an Antioch apartment after flooding water became waist-high, to evacuations in Santa Cruz due to fears of mudslides, delayed flights, flooded roads, car crashes, power outages and fallen trees, the problems are numerous. 

25,000 Bay Area homes and businesses have been affected by outages.  An overturned big rig on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge was one of over 200 1,800 auto accidents in the Bay Area today.

Flash flood warnings have been on and off throughout the day, with high wind advisories continuing. 

So far the biggest concern seems to be a 500,000 watt transmission tower that went down in Los Banos, severely curtailing northern California's available energy.  PG&E is asking all Californians to conserve energy until the tower is up and running. 

PG&E's website is interactive, saving time and limited resources.  A representative pointed out that the outage map available to customers is the same one they have on their screen when customers call.  "But if your power is out, you can't see it," she said.

WEATHER AND ENERGY TOOLS

• PG&E Electrical System Outage Map
• Energy System Status
• National Weather Service - SF Bay Area
• National Situation Weather Page  - Receive emergency notifications
• Doppler 7 Maps

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