A power outage in Stockton temporarily impacted more than 17,000 customers. Officials said it was related to a train derailment.
STOCKTON, Calif. — Update 5:30 p.m.
After a morning where more than 17,000 of PG&E’s Stockton customers lost power, company officials said only about 100 customers still don’t have electricity Monday evening.
The outage was caused by a train derailment around 8 a.m. Monday in the area of El Dorado Street and Clayton Avenue.
“I saw sparks on the cables,” said Miguel Hernandez, who lives near the scene. “I kept looking, and I saw one of those coils drop down and start hanging over…. One of the towers is bent, so we know it’s something big.”
A chaotic web of power lines, equipment, and poles narrowly missed homes in Hernandez’s neighborhoods. Power lines were seen laying on grass, sidewalks and on the pavement.
Hernandez and his neighbors immediately lost power after the derailment that caused a trail of damage.
The outage mainly affected downtown and south Stockton, where businesses were forced to close and schools were forced to use backup plans. Traffic lights around the area were also offline for hours.
“All of a sudden we just had no power. It’s affected our business all day,” said Alexander Zavala, who owns a pallet yard near the scene. “I’m pretty sure a lot of people are suffering and a lot of good businesses are going to be hurting like mine.”
One restaurant in downtown Stockton said its closure due to the power outage will set them back thousands of dollars. Zavala said he had to send 15 employees home early.
“It’s been a show, man,” Zavala said. “It’s been a hectic day.”
After a train derailment caused 17,000 in Stockton to be without power Monday morning, PG&E says power has been restored to all but 1,420 customers as of 1 p.m.
According to PG&E, crews are working to reroute power to restore as many customers as they can and removing damaged transmission lines from the ground.
Thousands of customers are still without power in Stockton after an outage Monday morning.
According to the PG&E outage map, the outage started around 8 a.m. There’s an estimated restoration time of 12:15 p.m. and 12:25 p.m. About 11,000 customers have been restored as of 11 a.m.
A spokesperson for PG&E said a train derailment came into contact with two transmission towers causing the outage. A Union Pacific spokesperson added three cars derailed in their Stockton rail yard, knocking over a power line. No one was hurt and no hazardous material was involved.
“PG&E crews are on the ground now, working closely with first responders. Our first priority is making the area safe. Once the site is secure, we will begin damage assessment and restoration work. We appreciate the public’s patience and will provide updates as more information becomes available,” PG&E said.
The San Joaquin County courthouse also closed Monday due to the outage. The Stockton Unified School District confirmed the district office and about a dozen schools have lost power, but the schools are still open and able to function.
To monitor the outage, view the PG&E outage map.