More than 5,000 customers are without power in North Berkeley and El Cerrito, according to PG&E’s outage map.
The outage began at 12:28 a.m. and was expected to be repaired by 3:45 a.m.
According to PG&E, 5,327 homes — from the Berkeley Hills west to Interstate 80 and north almost to Moeser Lane in El Cerrito — were without power as of the latest update, at 1:28 a.m.
The cause is listed as unknown, with an investigation underway.
A PG&E crew has been assigned to assess the damage, according to PG&E’s online Electric Outage Center.
News 24/680 is reporting on Twitter that “Fire, police and PG&E repair crews [are] busy responding to several power poles on fire in San Pablo.”
On Twitter, Berkeleyside readers reported outages, beginning just before 12:30 a.m., at Hearst and Gayley; Euclid and Hearst; just south of Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Rose; and in the Thousand Oaks neighborhood.
Calvin Li wrote at 1:03 a.m. that the outage at Euclid and Hearst appeared to be limited to traffic lights, with lights on at nearby properties.
Customers can sign up to receive updates about the outage via PG&E’s outage center.
Berkeleyside has a call in to PG&E, as of 1:15 a.m., to learn more.
More than 6,000 other PG&E customers, in San Pablo and Richmond, were also without power as of 1:13 a.m.
Update, 1:41 a.m. PG&E says, as of 1:22 a.m., about 2,000 customers in San Pablo and Richmond are without power, down from more than 6,000 previously. No change was reported in El Cerrito and Berkeley as of the latest update, at 1:28 a.m.
Update, 12:36 p.m. PG&E sent out an email shortly after 11 a.m. saying the outages were “caused by a fire reported in the vicinity of electric equipment.”
PG&E asks anyone who is experiencing a hazardous situation, such as a gas leak or downed power line, to call 800-743-5002.
PG&E crew members are still on-site working to resolve the issue. They said it will likely be back on by 3 p.m.
It was not immediately clear from the PG&E outage center how many people were still without power, though it looked like it had been restored to most customers. PG&E has not responded to a request for more information.
This story was updated as more information became available. Berkeleyside may continue to provide updates on this developing situation.
Related:
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