Time to Prepare! More Wind, Rain and Snow Heading Toward Northern and Central California
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) meteorologists are forecasting that the next series of winter storms will impact
Northern and Central California today through Monday.
The first storm that arrives today isn’t expected to produce significant rain although conditions will be breezy along the North
Coast and the Sacramento Valley. The Sunday storm is expected to be stronger, bringing heavy rain at times across much of the
PG&E service area. Breezy to gusty Southerly winds will last from early Sunday to early Monday along the North Coast and the
Sacramento Valley, with strongest winds anticipated Sunday afternoon and evening.
"December continues to be a rainy month for much of California, and that precipitation is much needed," said PG&E
meteorologist Mike Voss. "We want to remind our customers to be weather aware, to drive safely and to prepare for outages, in
case they occur."
PG&E’s meteorology team has developed a Storm Outage Prediction Model that incorporates real-time weather forecasts,
historic data and system knowledge to accurately show where and when storm impacts will be most severe. This model enables the
company to pre-stage crews and equipment as storms approach to enable rapid response to outages.
Safety reminders
- If you see a downed power line, assume it is energized and extremely dangerous. Do not touch or try
to move it—and keep yourself and others away. If you see damaged power lines or electrical equipment, call 911 immediately and
then notify PG&E at 1-800-743-5002.
- If a power line falls across a car that you're in, stay in the car. If you must get out of the car
due to a fire or other immediate life-threatening situation, do your best to jump clear of the car and land on both feet. Be sure
that no part of your body is touching the car when your feet touch the ground.
- During a power outage, use battery-operated flashlights, and not candles, due to the risk of fire. If
you must use candles, keep them away from drapes, lampshades and small children. Do not leave candles unattended.
- Don't use grills or other outdoor appliances or equipment indoors for space heating or cooking, as
these devices may emit carbon monoxide.
- Customers with generators should make sure they are properly installed by a licensed electrician.
Improperly installed generators pose a significant danger to crews working on power lines. Operate your generator outside. Never
operate it inside a building or garage.
- If you experience an outage, unplug or turn off all electrical appliances to avoid overloading
circuits and to prevent fire hazards when power is restored. Simply leave a single lamp on to alert you when power returns. Turn
your appliances back on one at a time when conditions return to normal.
- Check and restock your emergency kits with flashlights, batteries, bottled water, non-perishable
foods, medicines, etc. Also, ensure a portable, battery-operated radio, TV or NOAA radio is on hand.
- If you are driving and encounter emergency vehicles with activated lights and sirens, remember to
move over as it's the law in California.
Outage information
For more information about outages and ways to prepare and stay safe during the storm, please visit
www.pge.com/stormsafety.
If outages occur, customers can find details and information on restoration by:
- Clicking onto
www.pge.com/outages and signing up for outage alerts via text, email or phone
- Following PG&E on social media for updates
- Calling PG&E’s outage information line at 1-800-743-5002.
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of
PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric energy companies in the United States.
Based in San Francisco, with more than 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation’s cleanest energy to nearly 16
million people in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit
www.pge.com/ and
pge.com/news.
Media Relations
415-973-5930
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