The Chronicle’s Fire Updates page documents the latest events in wildfires and power shut-offs across the Bay Area and the state of California.
The Chronicle’s Fire Map and Tracker provides updates on fires burning throughout California, including these huge lightning-sparked blazes in Northern California:
The Chronicle’s PG&E Outage Map provides real-time locations of where the power is out.
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Latest updates from today:
7 p.m. PG&E community resource centers open until 10 p.m. for residents impacted by shut-offs: Pacific Gas & Electric Co. officials said their community resource centers are open until 10 p.m. to help residents who are impacted by the safety power shut-offs. Click here to get more information about resource centers.
6:30 p.m. Fewer people than expected affected by PG&E shutoffs: PG&E said Thursday night that 32,000 people had their power shut off from Wednesday into Thursday, fewer than the 53,000 originally anticipated. The power utility anticipates bringing power back to at least 2,000 customers by the end of the night. Those remaining without power should be restored by Friday evening, said Mark Quinlan, an incident commander for PG&E.
5:55 p.m. Bay Area set or tied five record highs on Thursday: The National Weather Service reported that five record highs were set or tied on Thursday across the Bay Area — Richmond and downtown Oakland set records, while San Jose, Kentfield and Half Moon Bay matched their previous highs. More record-breaking is anticipated tomorrow,, and the weather service said a heat advisory remains in effect until 9 p.m. Friday.
5 p.m. PG&E outages trip Comcast offline: About 3,000 homes in Oakland lost Comcast internet service due to the PG&E outages — including some in areas where the lights stayed on. Other Comcast outages were scattered around the Bay Area. The Chronicle’s Bryan Mena has the story.
4:55 p.m. Sen. Mitt Romney pushes for a national commission on wildfire mitigation: The Republican senator from Utah on Thursday proposed establishing a national commission to study and recommend fire mitigation policies to Congress. “Wildfires represent an enormous threat to our country and to the people of our country,” Romney said, according to the Associated Press. “Doing things the way we’ve always been doing them does not make any sense.”
2:49 p.m. Human power at record levels fighting wildfires this year: California’s wildfire season this year has required firefighter numbers not seen in a dozen years to battle simultaneous blazes across the state. At its peak deployment so far, on Sept. 19, the state needed more than 19,000 firefighters on the frontlines of fires that began with a barrage of lightning strikes in August. Read the story here.
1:20 p.m. The blackouts hit Oakland: Thousands of people in the Oakland hills found themselves struggling without electricity Thursday morning as PG&E launched its power shutdowns as a precaution against fires sparking. The streets were mostly empty, even in usually busy Montclair Village and the roads to Highway 13. Stoplights were out and temporary stop signs turned intersections into four-way stops. Read The Chronicle’s story here.
1 p.m. State still battling 12 major fires: Cal Fire reported Thursday that nearly 9,000 firefighters continue to battle 21 wildfires across the state, and 12 of those are considered “remain major incidents.” A new fire erupted Wednesday night near Redlands in San Bernardino County, quickly growing to 100 acres but firefighters quickly contained 26 other new wildfires.
12:40 p.m. Redding man accused of arson in Shasta County: Eric Michael Smith, 38, of Redding, is accused of setting a series of small fires in June and July in the Shasta County forest using a “virtually untraceable cigarette lighter or pen torch,” according to a statement from the U.S. attorney’s office obtained by the Associated Press. Smith, who may have been responsible for at least four wildfires in Shasta-Trinity National Forest, was tracked down by the U.S. Forest Service and state fire investigators who used hidden motion-detection cameras to identify a car and plant a tracking device on it.
12:40 p.m. Power shutoffs affect 40,000: Pacific Gas and Electric Co. shut off power to approximately 40,000 customers in 20 Northern California counties, including all in the Bay Area but San Francisco and Marin, PG&E spokeswoman Tamar Sarkissian said. About 9,000 planned shutoffs were avoided by rerouting power through different transmission lines, she said. Another 4,000 customers in seven counties outside the Bay Area were scheduled to lose power Wednesday afternoon and evening.
10:13 a.m. Conserve energy in hot weather: Californians were reminded to conserve energy Thursday due to potential stress on the electricity grid during hot temperatures. The statewide Flex Alert issued by the California Independent System Operator asked residents to conserve energy from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday.
8:32 a.m. More record-setting temperatures may be coming: Temperatures in coastal areas, including San Francisco, were predicted in the 80s on Thursday, with inland areas expected in the 90s. The heat is “rare but not unheard of,” said meteorologist Will Pi. A red flag warning remains in effect throughout much of Northern California and into parts of the Bay Area through 11 a.m. Friday
8:18 a.m. PG&E removes tree from power pole in Oakland: PG&E crews worked Thursday to remove a downed tree that crashed into a power pole in Oakland’s Montclair Village neighborhood. Power lines in the area had not been deactivated by the utility’s peremptory blackouts, workers said on the scene. There was visible charring on the tree that fell, and neighbors reported being startled by a transformer blowing at around 2:30 a.m. Chronicle photographer Jessica Christian captured the operation in progress.
6:58 a.m. NWS: Heat a concern as red flag warning continues: Powerful gusts and sustained winds buffeted much of the Bay Area overnight, but no new fires were reported, the National Weather Service said. The strong winds followed a day of record-setting heat. Napa and Kentfield (Marin County) recorded temperatures in the mid-90s, the highest those locations have ever recorded on that date in October. The unseasonable heat is expected to continue throughout the Bay Area on Thursday. Santa Rosa, San Jose, Oakland and Livermore all all forecasted to see highs in the mid-90s during the hottest afternoon periods Thursday, meteorologists said.
4:01 a.m. Winds picking up across region: As predicted, surging winds are blowing across the Bay Area, creating sustained tensions over raised fire risks. The National Weather Service recorded gusts of 55 mph on Black Hawk Ridge, at the southeast end of Mt. Diablo State Park. A sensor on Mt. Alison, east of Fremont, recorded a 44 mph gust, and winds were blowing at between 50 to 60 mph at times early Thursday morning at Mt. St. Helena. Wind speeds were predicted to peak at around sunrise Thursday, or about 7:15 a.m.
12:45 a.m. Wind gusts of 53 mph recorded at Mount Umunhum: Wind speeds reached 43 mph on Mount Umunhum in the South Bay, with winds gusts reaching 53 mph at 12:30 a.m. Thursday, according to data collected by the National Weather Service’s Fire Weather Snooper.
Updates from Wednesday, Oct. 14:
10:25 p.m. Winds reach 40 mph on Mount St. Helena: Wind speeds were rising on Mount St. Helena on Wednesday night, with winds reaching speeds of 40 mph with gusts of 47 mph at 10:20 p.m., according to data collected by the National Weather Service at a weather station on Mount St. Helena, Sonoma County’s tallest peak at 4,339 feet.
9:40 p.m. North to northeast winds increasing in North Bay, East Bay and Santa Cruz mountains: Meteorologists with the National Weather Service’s Bay Area office said north to northeast winds are “on the increase in the hills, ridges and peaks” of North Bay, East Bay and Santa Cruz mountains. Officials said “Critically dry conditions” are also underway in these areas, pointing to red circles in a “Fire Weather Snooper” map showing weather stations that are recording “Red Flag” conditions.
8:56 p.m. Outages have now reached San Mateo and Contra Costa counties: According to PG&E’s power outage map, customers in these two Bay Area counties are now experiencing Public Safety Power Shut-offs. Shut-offs have also begun in Santa Cruz County.
8:35 p.m. Thousands without power in Bay Area as part of scheduled shutoffs: PG&E spokesperson Denny Boyles told The Chronicle that the utility’s Public Safety Power Shut-off outages were underway in the Bay Area as scheduled on Wednesday evening. Roughly 6,000 customer accounts in the North Bay, primarily in Napa County, were without power shortly before 8:30 p.m, Boyles said. Boyles told The Chronicle that he wanted to offer clarity for concerned PG&E customer accounts in the Oakland hills that their power is scheduled to be restored by 10 p.m. Thursday — not Friday, as was stated on a previous PG&E news release. He said restoration for that area is dependent on two factors: “The weather conditions changing, and us being able to complete inspections during daylight hours,” he said.
8:28 p.m. August Complex Fire 76% contained, West Zone 95% contained: The August Complex Fire that scorched more than 1 million acres throughout Mendocino, Humboldt, Trinity, Tehama, Lake, Colusa & Glenn counties is now 76% contained, Cal Fire reports. The West Zone of the complex fire burned more than 140,000 acres and is 95% contained. Cal Fire expects to fully contain the fire by Oct. 21.
7:59 p.m. Shutoffs in progress in the Bay Area: PG&E has begun to shut off power to customers in the North Bay and other parts of Northern California, according to the utility. Maps show Public Safety Power Shut-off outages in Sonoma, Napa and Solano counties.
6:38 p.m. Michigan Air National Guard helps California combat wildfires: The Michigan Air National Guard assigned its MQ-9 Reaper aircraft to asses the wildfires raging throughout the state by capturing aerial footage. According to the Air Force’s website, “Wind and smoke made visibility a challenge. However the bird’s eye view from the MQ-9 Reaper with thermal technology gave a clear view of the wildfires direction.”
6:30 p.m. Statewide Flex Alert issued for Thursday: California’s grid operator is encouraging residents across the state to conserve electricity from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday due to potential heat stress on the electricity grid. Californians are encouraged to pre-cool their living spaces by setting their thermostats lower than usual before 3 p.m., and after that, they should set their thermostats at 78 degrees or higher.
4:20 p.m. Air quality good despite smoke from Woodward Fire: The Woodward Fire in Point Reyes National Seashore is officially 100% contained, but people are seeing smoke in the area. Despite the smoke, air quality remained good, air monitors showed. Park spokeswoman Christine Beekman told The Chronicle the smoke in fact was from the Woodward Fire, not a separate fire, and the fire remained contained.
3:39 p.m. Fewer customers than believed are likely to face outages: Bay Area power shutoffs were expected to begin at 8 p.m. Wednesday, affecting portions of counties across the area, said Mayra Tostado, a PG&E spokeswoman. PG&E expects to shut power to about 53,000 customers in the Bay Area and beyond, 1,000 fewer than initially anticipated, due to fire-prevention measures. Crews are aiming for full restoration by 10 p.m. Friday, Tostado said.
3:30 p.m. Feds amend California major disaster declaration: FEMA will provide additional disaster assistance to California for the wildfire disaster declared on Aug. 22. In a statement Wednesday, the agency said it would allow for an added 30 days of funding at 100% federal cost-share for debris removal and emergency protective measures, including direct federal assistance.
3:20 p.m. Vintner launches wildfire relief fundraiser: Vintner Kathryn Hall is launching a Facebook Live campaign Friday to raise money for wildfire relief. Hall owns HALL, WALT and BACA Wines with tasting rooms in Napa, Sonoma and Healdsburg.The effort through the Redwood City Credit Union will launch during Hall’s Happy Hour series at 4 p.m. Friday on Facebook Live. Hall announced she will match the funds raised.
3:15 p.m. More than 20,000 in Bay Area may lose power: Pacific Gas & Electric Co. is warning that more than 20,000 Bay Area customers, mostly in the North Bay and East Bay, could have their power turned off until Friday in a precautionary move to prevent electrical lines and equipment from sparking wildfires.
3:11 p.m. Getting hotter and more dangerous: Temperatures warmed Wednesday afternoon and dry breezes swept across even the lowest parts of the Bay Area. The National Weather Service, which had already issued a red flag warning for dry gusting winds put out two more cautions: a wind advisory for the North Bay foothills and mountains Wednesday night and a heat advisory for the whole Bay Area on Thursday. Read more here.
2:48 p.m. Cal Fire reports 24 California wildfires were contained: Firefighters quickly contained 24 new blazes that broke out Tuesday as wildfire conditions worsened, Cal Fire reported Wednesday. More than 11,000 firefighters remain on the front lines grappling with 20 other wildfires across the state — 13 of them “major incidents.”
2:42 p.m. PG&E shut-offs could hit much of Bay Area: Power shut-offs as soon as Wednesday evening could hit some 54,000 customers in portions of 24 counties, including most Bay Area counties, PG&E says, as preemptive electricity cuts are employed in an effort to prevent wildfires caused by wind-damaged power lines. Read more here.
2:32 p.m. Bay Area braces for possible new inferno: With a red flag warning in effect and winds and temperatures on the rise, the Bay Area braced again Wednesday for another period of high fire danger and possible precautionary power shut-offs. Weather across the region was dry Wednesday morning, with none of the area’s familiar fog in sight. Read more here.
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