Gusty weekend winds bring possibility of planned power outages in parts of North Bay

Officials with Pacific Gas and Electric Co. said they were monitoring weekend weather forecasts that call for winds up to 35 mph and the potential for rain overnight into Saturday morning to determine whether or not to turn off power to thousands in Northern California.

PG&E warned its customers Friday that it will “likely” turn off power to 5,800 customers in 13 Northern California counties and two tribal communities, including parts of Sonoma, Lake and Napa counties, as wind and drought conditions raise the risk of wildfires.

In the North Bay, power shutoffs are possible on Sunday and Monday, the company said.

Only three customers would be impacted in Sonoma County by the possible Public Safety Power Shutoffs. In Lake County, 59 customers would lose power, and in Napa County, 85 customers would be impacted, according to PG&E.

(To see if your address would be affected go to bit.ly/3CSc3rx.)

A Public Safety Power Shutoff is when the company turns off power to an area during increased levels of wildfire risk, such as a combination of hot, windy or dry weather.

The shutoffs are a strategy PG&E has imposed in recent years to reduce the risk of their energized lines starting a wildfire.

This comes after the company’s equipment was found to have caused a number of deadly wildfires in Northern California in recent years, including the 2017 North Bay fires and the 2018 Camp Fire in Butte County, the deadliest and most destructive fire in the state’s history.

The northwestern winds were expected to begin Friday night and reach up to 35 mph, mainly impacting the coast and higher elevation areas in the Bay Area, said Rick Canepa, a meteorologist for the weather service. Ocean winds may reach 45 mph.

Most people in the interior North Bay, including Santa Rosa, Petaluma and Rohnert Park, will likely see 10 to 20 mph winds through Sunday.

Weather experts said Friday night might bring light rain — a few hundredths of an inch — to the coastal hills and mountains.

“If we're lucky, maybe a little bit more as it interacts with the coastal terrain and the cooling combined with elevated water vapor that we're seeing along the frontal boundary,” Canepa said.

Weekend temperatures are expected to be in the lower 60s on Saturday and Sunday, he said. Overnight lows may dip into the upper 30s.

The winds will die down by Monday, but not for long as another cold front is expected to arrive by Tuesday in the Bay Area, Canepa said.

You can reach Staff Writer Alana Minkler at 707-526-8511 or alana.minkler@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @alana_minkler.