With high wind advisories set to take effect across parts of the Bay Area this afternoon, PG&E said it is bracing for possible weather-related outages.
With high wind advisories set to take effect across parts of the Bay Area this afternoon, PG&E said it is bracing for possible weather-related outages.
The National Weather Service issued a high wind advisory that will be in effect from noon to midnight for the North Bay mountains, East Bay hills and Diablo Range and the Santa Cruz mountains, where northwest winds are expected to reach steady speeds between 20 to 35 mph.
This morning, the California Highway Patrol issued high wind advisories on all of the region’s eight bridges except for the Martinez bridge.
Aside from slowing bridge traffic, the whipping winds–with gusts expected to reach between 40 and 55 mph–also have the potential to down trees and power lines.
PG&E spokesman Joe Molica said they have been working with their meteorology department to take preventative action in advance of the blustery weather.
“We’re very closely monitoring the situation,” he said.
As of this morning, power outages were minimal across the Bay Area, although 840 customers south of Lake Berryessa were without service, Molica said, in addition to 100 customers in the East Bay and 25 customers on the Peninsula.
“We do expect the winds to peak this afternoon, so we’re certainly not out of the woods yet,” Molica said.
The winds are expected to impact coastal areas and higher elevations, according to the weather service.
Patricia Decker, Bay City News
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