Update: More than 15,000 still without power across SLO County as storm sweeps region
Update to this story >> >> Storm updates: SLO County copes with closures, flooding, outages — and braces for more rain
Update, 7 p.m.
Thousands of San Luis Obispo County residents entered Monday evening in the dark, as power outages caused by the torrential winter storm continued.
In total, more than 15,000 PG&E customers in the county have no power, according to the utility’s online outage map.
About 11,300 of those customers are in the Morro Bay and Los Osos area, 1,900 in Nipomo and 1,300 in Avila Beach, according to the outage map.
In most cases, PG&E has not provided an update on when power may be restored.
Update, 1:40 p.m.
PG&E appears to have restored power to more than half of its affected customers.
While there are still about 6,000 customers without power across the county, repairs near Nacimiento Reservoir and in Paso Robles have significantly reduced the number of outages, and time estimates have been provided for repairs in some locations.
Morro Bay’s 559 affected customers can expect power to be restored around 10:30 p.m., while the 1,257 affected customers in Avila Beach can expect repairs by 11:30 p.m Tuesday, Jan. 10.
2,683 customers in Paso Robles remain without power or an estimate on repairs.
Update, 11:00 a.m.
Around 2,400 customers lost power in the Nacimiento Reservoir area, PG&E’s outage tracker said.
Meanwhile, Cambria’s total number of affected customers grew to around 640 total.
Countywide, around 13,500 customers are currently without power, and no repair timeline has been provided by PG&E, with PG&E spokesperson Carina Corral attributing the delays to inclement weather conditions.
Update, 9:18 a.m.
Corral said conditions in some service areas have made it unsafe for crews to work, causing delays and uncertainty over the estimated time to restore power.
“We understand how important electricity is to keep you and your family safe in the winter months, and we will continue working tirelessly to restore power,” Corral said. “This is especially true for areas including Morro Bay, Cayucos and Cambria and north of the Cuesta Grade, where downed trees are the causes of many outages.”
Traffic jams from flooded intersections and traffic signal lights being out have also slowed crew responses, Corral said.
In the meantime, Corral said customers should exercise caution and follow county guidelines on best practices to stay safe during flooding.
“In regard to power lines, always assume downed power lines are energized and dangerous,” Corral said. “Stay away from the lines and keep others away from them. Call 9-1-1 immediately to report the location of a downed line. ”
Original Story:
Several thousand PG&E customers across San Luis Obispo County lost power on Monday morning due to a severe winter storm.
Customers in southern Cayucos and the northern part of Morro Bay bore the brunt of the outages, according to the PG&E outage center.
A total of 2,382 customers in that area were without electricity around 7:11 a.m., PG&E said, and while 590 customers in southern Morro Bay lost power around 5:44 a.m.
Another 1,257 customers in Avila Beach lost power around 6 a.m., the utility company said.
A total of 818 customers in Templeton lost power around 8:01 a.m., and more than 250 customers in Cambria were without electricity.
Around 8:10 a.m., around 5,000 customers in the Paso Robles area lost power, PG&E said.
In total, more than 10,000 customers in San Luis Obispo County were without power as of 9 a.m. Monday.
PG&E had not provided a timeline as of 9 a.m. for restoring power to customers across the county.
This story was originally published January 9, 2023 at 9:14 AM.
