CALIFORNIA. (THECOUNT) — New evacuations have been ordered for 50,000 people and counting in Sonoma County as a massive wildfire continues to burn Saturday.
As fires rage, millions of Californians will have their power shut off – again – as PG&E, the golden state’s largest utility company, said it would disconnect electricity for the third time in as many weeks. The embattled company cited “historically” strong winds that are forecast for the area as the reason for the shut down.
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California Governor Gavin Newsom slammed PG&E’s after the company admitted its electrical equipment may have ignited a devastating wildfire that ravaged California’s wine country on Friday.
The entire communities of Healdsburg and Windsor were ordered to evacuate ahead of severe winds that could lead to erratic fire behavior near the blaze burning in wine country, reports DailyMail on Saturday.
The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office said it is expected to conduct the largest evacuation in the county in more than 25 years.
‘The winds are expected anywhere between 8pm and midnight and from all reports they’re expected to be extremely strong,’ said Brian Vitorelo with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Two previous power shutdowns were done amid concern that gusty winds could disrupt or knock down power lines and spark devastating wildfires.
Weather forecasts called for strong winds to lash much of the region over the weekend, with some gusts hitting 85 mph (137 kph). It might be a record wind event, the National Weather Service warned.
Pacific Gas & Electric said it would begin blackouts in the afternoon for about 940,000 homes and businesses in 36 counties for 48 hours or longer throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, wine country and Sierra foothills. That’s about 90,000 more customers affected than previously predicted. It previously said it was considering cutting power to 850,000 homes, which would affect around 2.5 million people.
PG&E Corporation CEO and President Bill Johnson tried to reassure customers that the company was taking the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of Californians.
‘We understand that a longer shutoff would be very difficult for our customers. We are already working to minimize the length, including amassing a force of field personnel from PG&E, plus contractors and other utility companies, to be ready to tackle the inspection, repair and restoration process as soon as the weather passes,’ he said in a statement.
DEVELOPING::
Geo quick facts: California, a western U.S. state, stretches from the Mexican border along the Pacific for nearly 900 miles. Its terrain includes cliff-lined beaches, redwood forest, the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Central Valley farmland and the Mojave Desert. The city of Los Angeles is the seat of the Hollywood entertainment industry. Hilly San Francisco is known for the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island and cable cars – wikipedia.