Pacific Gas and Electric Company has announced their intent to conduct a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) which will include portions of Piedmont as early as Sunday, October 25th at 8:00 p.m. They estimate that power will be restored no later than Tuesday, October 27th at Noon.
Other power outages may occur as a result of this wind event. All Piedmonters are advised to be prepared for power outages during this wind event, which may or may not be proactive Public Safety Power Shutoffs.
Based upon information provided by PG&E it appears that all or portions on the following streets in Piedmont will most likely be included in this PSPS:
- Abbott Way
- Cambrian Avenue
- Cavanaugh Court
- Cavendish Lane
- Croydon Circle
- Echo Lane
- Estates Drive
- Hampton Road
- Huntleigh Road
- Inverleith Terrace
- La Salle Avenue
- Lexford Road
- Marlborough Court
- Maxwelton Road
- Moraga Avenue
- Park Boulevard
- Red Rock Road
- St. James Drive
- St. James Place
- Sandringham Place
- Sandringham Road
- Selborne Drive
- Somerset Road
- Trestle Glen Road
- Wyngaard Avenue
It is likely that electricity to all residences, businesses, schools, mobile phone towers, and public facilities in the affected area may be turned off. Residents can visit PG&E’s PSPS page to look up, by address, whether their home will be affected.
The City of Piedmont has no additional detail as to whether individual homes or businesses will be affected by the PSPS.
Piedmonters are among the up to 450,000 PG&E customers across its service territory who are slated to be affected by this event.
PG&E will attempt to alert affected customers through calls and text messages just before power is shut off. They will also use their web site and social media channels to provide information and will keep local news and radio outlets informed and updated.
Residents and businesses who are enrolled in East Bay Community Energy will be affected by these Public Safety Power Shutoffs.
The City of Piedmont has plans in place to ensure that emergency services and public safety are maintained during a Public Safety Power Shutoff, but affected residents will need to be self- reliant for a period of time. For more information on how to be prepared for emergencies, please see the Public Safety Committee’s Get Ready, Piedmont brochure.
During a Public Safety Power Shutoff, please call 911 to report any emergencies which occur. Please hold non-emergency calls until after the PSPS event has concluded.
Water usage in a PSPS event
EBMUD has topped off reservoirs and has backup generators in place to provide power to critical facilities. The utility asks that customers in affected areas reduce water use indoors and turn off outdoor irrigation to conserve water in our local reservoir tanks.
EBMUD will make information available as the situation develops. For updates, check ebmud.com/psps and follow EBMUD @ebmud on Twitter, Nextdoor, and Facebook
Visit pge.com/psps or call 1-866-743-6589 for the latest information about the power outage. Report any water emergencies to EBMUD at 1-866-403-2683.
This PSPS event is a good reminder to keep emergency water supplies on hand. EBMUD recommends two gallons per person per day, plus pets. More information on how to store emergency water is available at www.ebmud.com/waterstorage.
Preparing for a potential shut-off (PSPS event)
To ready for a potential shut-off, the City recommends residents take the following steps:
- Make sure PG&E has your current contact information. Update your contact information with PG&E online at pge.com/mywildfirealerts or call (866) 743-6589.
- Check and update your emergency kit (HERE) and supplies (include hard copies of critical information and life-saving prescriptions).
- Identify a place you can go to cool off, if necessary
- Have a back-up charging system for cell phones and keep devices fully charged at all times.
- Learn how to manually open your garage door.
- Keep cash on hand (credit/debit stations, and ATMs may be without power).
- Learn more about Public Safety Power Shutoffs in your area (HERE) and work with your neighbors to make sure everyone is ready.
- Stay informed during disasters and sign up for alerts HERE.
Additionally, PG&E suggests that customers can better prepare for PSPS by:
- Plan for medical needs like medications that require refrigeration or devices that need power.
- Identify backup charging methods for phones and keep hard copies of emergency numbers.
- Keep in mind family members who are elderly, younger children and pets. Information and tips including a safety plan checklist are available at pge.com/wildfiresafety.
To find out if you will be impacted, enter your address in the PSPS service impact map. PG&E will be updating information regarding the service impact areas here.