Charge your phone, laptop, and batteries, stock up on candles or flashlights/headlamps, and if you have something precious that *must* be refrigerated eat it (food) or figure out a possible backup (meds).
Better to have closed schools to prevent fires than closed schools because of fires but if PG&E outages closes schools for days has an enormous impact on regional economy abc7news.com/weather/list-s…
Cutting power to 800,000 people is just the latest example of how it was/is/and will be cheaper to spend money fighting and preparing for climate change that to not, by a million miles.
On a household level, this could be the new norm. So consider solar panels charging a battery/powerwall in addition to feeding back into grid. Miniturbines same.
And even small solar chargers will be helpful.
And even small solar chargers will be helpful.
If they do cut power to your area, check on elderly and disabled neighbors, particularly if it is hot. Particularly if they don't have a land line.
Also as many have pointed out, 800,000 subscribers is a per household measurement. Could be upward of 2 MILLION people without power as of midnight. Possibly for days.
One bit of good news:
This is a sobering list of things to think about if you're one of the 2 Million+ people who could have their power cut.
No power to traffic lights could be deadly. Bart will be up and running.
sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2019/10/08/bay…
No power to traffic lights could be deadly. Bart will be up and running.
sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2019/10/08/bay…
Good lord sfchronicle.com/business/artic…
~ A year ago. Better blackouts than fires. But the impact of days of blackouts will hit those with least, the most.
If Amtrak or MetroNorth was suspending service for maybe five days it would be topping cable news (ok 2nd after impeachment)
Important context re @PGE4Me and the risk of fire
If SF essentially takes of the function of @PGE4Me in SF—as the @BayGuardian has been advocating for decades—it could provide more resilience for SF but PG&E says loss of revenue would hurt safety and device elsewhere.
Power cuts have already rolled through wine country and mountain towns, could roll through Oakland and San Jose today, even going as far south as Bakersfield.
