Lights begin to come back on for southern Monterey County residents affected by power outages
SOLEDAD, Calif. (KION)
UPDATE 8/5/2021 4:30 p.m. PG&E reports that power has been restored to some customers affected by power outages in southern Monterey County Thursday.
An outage in Soledad that originally affected about 2,000 customers now appears to be affecting only 418.
An outage in the Greenfield area that affected more than 7,000 customers is now affecting 2,941, according to a PG&E outage map.
The utility said the cause of the outages appears to be weather-related. A spokesperson for PG&E said there was thick fog and dew in the southern part of the county today and after a long time without rain, substances such as dust, dirt and salt accumulate on power lines. When rain or mist comes after it has been dry, PG&E says the mixture turns into mud, which conducts electricity. They said it can damage equipment and result in tracking, which causes outages. A spokesperson for the utility said that is what caused damage to a power pole on Main Street in Soledad and other equipment damage on Walker.
The outage in Greenfield was caused by something called arcing, according to PG&E. The utility said that when there is enough dust and other particulates in the air near power lines, it can create an arc and cause damage to power lines. That is what they believe damaged the power lines on Highway 101.
Highway 101 is closed in both directions around Greenfield due to wires across the highway and a vegetation fire that started as a result.
UPDATE 8/5/2021 1 p.m. The lights are beginning to come back on for some southern Monterey County residents affected by power outages Thursday.
PG&E now reports that about 700 customers are without power in the Soledad area, and more than 4,500 customers are without power in Greenfield, King City and the area extending to the west.
Earlier today, about 2,000 customers in the Soledad area and more than 7,000 customers in Greenfield and the area extending west of it were without power.
Police said the Soledad outage was the result of 7 transformers being blown. In Greenfield, northbound Highway 101 at Espinosa Road has been closed for more than 2 hours due to wires down across the highway and a vegetation fire that started as a result.
UPDATE 8/5/2021 11 a.m. A power outage has grown from about 2,000 customers in the Soledad area to more than 7,000 customers in southern Monterey County, according to PG&E.
There are about 2,163 customers without power in the Soledad area, and police say about 80% of the city is without power. According to police, the outages are the result of 7 transformers being blown. They also report multiple power poles damaged and lines down.
In the Greenfield area and south to almost King City, about 5,706 customers are without power as of about 10:20 a.m. PG&E said the cause of the outage is still unknown and power is expected to be restored at around 2 p.m. Northbound lanes of Highway 101 are closed at Espinosa Road due to power lines in the roadway and a vegetation fire.
Northbound lanes of Highway 101 closed near Greenfield
In the Santa Cruz Mountains, more than 5,200 customers are without power.
PREVIOUS STORY: More than 2,000 PG&E customers are without power Thursday morning as the city of Soledad is experiencing widespread outages.
Soledad Police are saying the outages are due to at least 7 transformers being blown. Police are also reporting multiple power poles are damaged and lines are down.
Police are asking residents to avoid the following areas as PG&E crews investigate and restore power:
- 280 3rd St/Palm Ave.
- 148 Main/Soledad St.
- Ticino/Soledad St.
- 1200 block Walker Drive
- 1141 Palm Ave.
- 700 Cordoba St.
- 1300 blk. of Walker Drive
It was just Friday when widespread outages impacted south Monterey County, including Soledad.
Residents there say it's something that they've had to prepare for due to it becoming an ongoing issue.
