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Anger, frustration over power outages almost 2 weeks after winter storm hit Southeast U.S.
[ad_2]Anger, frustration over power outages almost 2 weeks after winter storm hit Southeast U.S. – CBS News
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Single car crash causes widespread power outage in Raleigh
More than one thousand Duke Energy customers are
without power in Raleigh after a crash on Wednesday night.Raleigh police said a car crashed into a power pole
along Millbrook Road. The driver was not injured.Police have not released any information about
the driver or what caused the crash.Officers said Duke Energy crews are working to
repair the outage. As of 9 p.m., 1,370 customers were without power.Power is expected to be restored by 11:15 p.m.
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Mississippi families face prolonged power outages with no way to follow boil-water advisories
Across parts of the South, prolonged power outages are colliding with boil-water advisories, leaving some families without a way to make their water safe to drink.
In Mississippi, more than 36,000 homes and businesses have now gone a second week without electricity after a historic winter storm brought heavy snow and ice to the region, damaging power lines and blocking access to some communities.
The crisis has forced families to rely on bottled water and gas heaters as freezing temperatures persist.
In the small town of Gravestown, volunteer firefighters have been going door to door for wellness checks, delivering water and basic supplies to residents who have been without power for days.
It’s been a long wait for James and Heather Albertson. The couple huddles around a gas heater inside their home with their daughter and 4-year-old granddaughter to try and stay warm.
A sustained cold snap has slowed repairs to damaged power lines and utility poles. Officials estimate it could take another 10 days to restore power in some areas.
When asked whether they could hold out that long, Heather Albertson said, “We don’t have a choice.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has sent 90 generators to Mississippi since last weekend’s storm. Subcontractors hired by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are installing them at critical agencies and businesses, like long-term care facilities, hospitals, water districts and fire departments.
The storm’s impact has stretched beyond the state. Nashville, Tennessee, experienced its largest power outage on record, with more 230,000 customers affected at its peak. Thousands remain in the dark, prompting city leaders to form a commission to investigate Nashville Electric Service.
“They should be prepared for this,” said Nashville City Council member Emily Benedict. “This is not new to them. The public relies on them to be prepared for events like this.”
In northern Mississippi, crews are working around the clock to restore electricity to 7,000 customers. Progress there has been slowed by downed trees and impassable roads.
“Our crews are having to cut their way into some neighborhoods and some county roads to even be able to work on the power,” said Sarah Brooke Bishop, a spokesperson for the Northeast Mississippi Electric Power Association.
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Power restored to thousands in Denver area after Sunday outages
UPDATE: Widespread power outages caused by failed Xcel Energy transformer
More than 185,000 customers were left in the dark on Sunday as widespread power outages hit the Denver area, according to energy utility officials.
During the peak of Sunday’s outages, roughly 44,000 Core Electric Cooperative customers and 145,000 Xcel Energy customers were without power, according to the two utilities.
The widespread power outages also caused disruptions at Denver International Airport and law enforcement agencies across the southeast metro area.
As of 5:15 p.m. Sunday, all but a handful of Core Electric‘s power outages had been resolved, according to the utility’s outage map. Just 30 minutes earlier, reported outages included:
- 23,416 customers in Arapahoe County,
- 20,242 customers in Douglas County,
- 692 customers in Elbert County,
- And 1 customer in Adams County.
The cause of the outages remained under investigation Sunday evening, Core Electric spokesperson Amber King said.
Xcel Energy spokesperson Michelle Aguayo confirmed in an email to The Denver Post that “a large outage” also impacted as many as 145,000 of that utility’s customers in the southeast metro area.
As of 5:47 p.m. Sunday, power had been restored to all Xcel Energy customers, Aguayo said.
Sunday’s power issues reached as far as Denver International Airport, where trains connecting the airport’s concourses and other unspecified systems were disrupted, airport officials said. All airport operations had returned to normal Sunday evening, according to a 5:09 p.m. update from the airport.
Several local law enforcement agencies, including the Parker Police Department and Aurora Police Department, reported issues during the height of the afternoon power outages, including nonfunctional emergency phone lines and dark traffic lights.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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Snow piled atop transformer causes hourslong power outage at Tysons Corner mall – WTOP News
Virginia’s Tysons Corner Mall was hit by a power outage Sunday, leaving residents and consumers wondering what was going on.
Virginia’s Tysons Corner Center was hit by a temporary power outage Sunday, leaving residents and consumers wondering what was going on.
Aisha Khan, a spokesperson for the utility provider, confirmed that power was restored to the mall around 5:30 p.m.
Khan said the electricity loss was caused by an undisclosed amount of snow that had been removed from the parking lot and piled on top of one of the mall’s transformers, prompting it to malfunction.
The Fairfax County Police Department previously told WTOP that its officers were “assisting with traffic control for the traffic lights within the mall.” Dominion crews were also on-site.
It’s unclear which stores remained open or were directly affected by the outage.
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Will Vitka
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Equipment issue leaves thousands without power, including at RDU airport
Duke Energy officials said an equipment issue caused an outage that impacted 1,800 customers including at RDU airport Friday.
RDU officials said they are working with Duke
Energy crews to resolve the issues as quickly as possible, and backup
generators are running.“We are in the process of rerouting power now to bring the airport back soon,” Duke Energy officials said.
It is unclear if the outage has impacted any flights. Power is expected to be restored by 11:30 p.m.
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Duke Energy restores power to 150,000 NC homes, prepares for upcoming winter storm
Sleet helped mitigate widespread power outages for much of the Triangle this past weekend, but Duke Energy still saw scattered impacts across parts of the state.
The utility company restored 150,000 customers over the course of two days. Most of those outages were in Western North Carolina, which saw more freezing rain.
Areas north of the Triangle saw more impacts from the colder weather. East of Raleigh and south towards the Sandhills saw more freezing rain developed in the final hours of the storm.
“Here in Raleigh we saw several cars hitting utility poles; that’s always a challenge when you have slick roads,” Duke Energy Spokesperson Jeff Brooks said.
Tuesday morning, nearly 700 customers in Durham lost power for about six hours after an insulator failed.
While the precipitation helped offset more outages for this past weekend, Duke Energy said it has made improvements to their electrical grid and worked to cut precarious tree limbs throughout the year.
“We are a much more advanced utility than we were even just a few years ago, and all those improvements benefit our customers,” Brooks said.
Crews are now preparing for another winter weather system potentially moving in this weekend. Brooks said it’s too early in the week to determine exactly what the impacts are going to be, and therefore what resources are needed.
They’ll be monitoring over the next two days to decide whether to add reinforcements to the local crews they already have on standby.
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A TikTok US power outage caused a ‘cascading systems failure’ leading to multiple bugs
If your TikTok feed has felt a little off lately, it’s not just you. TikTok says is still working to fix its service in the US following a power outage at one of its data centers that’s caused “multiple bugs” in the app. TikTok users have reported problems logging in and uploading videos, as well as strange behavior from the “for you” algorithm. Creators have also noticed that new uploads are seemingly getting o views or likes and that in-app earnings have disappeared.
“Since yesterday we’ve been working to restore our services following a power outage at a U.S. data center impacting TikTok and other apps we operate,” the company wrote in a statement Monday. “We’re working with our data center partner to stabilize our service. We’re sorry for this disruption and hope to resolve it soon.”
In a subsequent update several hours later, the company said that the power outage had caused a “cascading systems failure” that is still affecting the app and leading to “multiple bugs,” including those affecting view counts and load times. “Creators may temporarily see ‘0’ views or likes on videos, and your earnings may look like they’re missing,” the company wrote in an update on X. “This is a display error caused by server timeouts; your actual data and engagement are safe.”
The statement didn’t directly address reported issues with the app’s recommendation algorithm. Since Sunday, users have reported seeing a wave of generic videos flood their feeds, which are typically hyper-personalized. Other users have reported seeing the same few videos repeated over and over again.
The issues come just days after TikTok finalized a deal to spin off its US business into a separate entity largely controlled by US investors. That timing hasn’t gone unnoticed by users, many of whom are already suspicious of the company pushing a terms of service and privacy policy in the hours after the deal was finalized. The problems affecting the app’s recommendation algorithm have also raised questions about TikTok USDS Joint Venture’s plans to “retrain” TikTok’s central feature.
Update, January 26, 2026, 4:18PM PT: This post has been updated to include additional information from TikTok about the outage and bugs affecting users.
Karissa Bell
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With chance for ice storm comes threat of power loss. Here’s how to prepare
While it is too soon to tell how much snow or ice the Triangle will see, the WRAL Severe Weather Center is tracking a system that could bring “significant” impacts for the coming weekend, Jan. 24 and 25, 2026.
At Duke Energy, which provides power to nearly 5 million customers across the Carolinas, spokesman Jeff Brooks said, “We are monitoring the weather track for the week. Obviously, we’re five days out, so that forecast is going to change, and so at this point, we have to continue monitoring and we’ll adjust our plans as the week progresses.”
Every type of precipitation is possible, WRAL meteorologist Elizabeth Gardner said.
>> Tracking snow, ice chances: Forecast signals ‘significant’ winter weather for weekend
Heavy, accumulating snow or layers of ice can weigh down power lines, causing outages in a winter storm. Falling branches can also land on lines, causing power disruption.
“This storm has the potential of generating both of those,” Brooks said. “So that’s something that we’ll have to watch as the forecast becomes a little more solid in the days ahead.”
He recommended that the general public make their plans as well.
“Every storm is an opportunity to be ready. You never know when that storm is going to generate outages,” Brooks said.
Gas up, stock up ahead of winter storm
People can take the days before the storm to stock up on batteries, gas up cars and generators and withdraw cash, because ATMs and card transactions don’t work without power.
Every home should have an emergency kit that includes:
- Prescription and non-prescription medicines for everyone in the family.
- Flashlights and plenty of batteries
- Ready-to-eat, non-perishable foods, such as canned meats, granola bars, instant soup and cereals, fruits and vegetables, canned or box juices, peanut butter, jelly, crackers, granola bars or trail mix
- Baby supplies: formula, bottles pacifiers, blankets, baby wipes and disposable diapers
- Battery-powered or hand-crank radio (NOAA Weather Radio, if possible)
- Personal hygiene items like soap, shampoo and toilet paper
- Plenty of blankets
Duke Energy team tracks storm to get power back on quickly
Duke Energy will alert customers when they know when and where an outage could happen, Brooks said.
“We have an in -house team of meteorologists that actually tracks every storm that comes through the Carolinas, and they do that not only so that we know what’s going to happen, but because their forecasts help drive our damage modeling system. And that system helps us determine where we’re likely to see outages and in what quantity,” he said.
Those models help the utility put the right people in place to quickly get customers back online. Duke pulls from employees across six states, bringing help to where it is needed most.
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Thousands temporarily lose power in Tuolumne County following transformer explosion, officials say
Tens of thousands of residents were without power across Tuolumne County due to an explosion near a power station, according to the sheriff’s office. No injuries have been reported.Just after 5 p.m. Friday, the PG&E outage map showed nearly 30,000 without power across the county, including 1,957 households in Sonora and 27,773 households in unincorporated areas. By 6 p.m., power had been restored to about half the affected population, with 15,420 customers without power across the county.Leer en español. By 7 p.m., power was restored for most customers in the area.The Tuolumne County Fire Department initially said its crews responded to a reported lithium-ion battery explosion at Pacific Ultrapower near Chinese Camp around 4:15 p.m. However, the sheriff’s office later said crews determined the explosion was connected with a transformer at ENGIE, a facility neighboring Ultrapower.In a news release, ENGIE said its Sierra Battery Storage facility experienced an electrical issue around 4 p.m. and some electrical circuits and equipment tripped at the facility. The company said there was no fire on-site. Steve Gross, president of Jamestown Energy, told KCRA 3 that the incident was not at their facility, but at an adjacent facility where there is an energy storage project with lithium-ion batteries. Gross said that the incident knocked out the main line, affecting Jamestown Energy’s ability to send out power.Cal Fire crews also responded this evening. A battalion chief said they are always on high alert when they hear the word “explosion.””We were told that there was black smoke and an explosion. And after investigating, we noticed that it was a transformer that had exploded. And from there we just mitigated the cause of it,” Jeffrey Cox, Cal Fire TCU battalion chief, said.Although there was no fire when they arrived, Cox said, the crews assisted in evacuating the facility to ensure everyone’s safety.The fire department said localized evacuations of the plant were conducted and all employees are accounted for. Those evacuation orders have since been lifted. The extent of the damage is unclear. The Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office said there were no road closures or additional evacuations associated with the incident, but urged the public to avoid the area. The outage map shows the power loss was reported just before 4:30 p.m. Friday. ENGIE said its facility has been disconnected from the grid while technical experts are investigating the cause of the incident. KCRA 3 has reached out to PG&E for more information. Track PG&E power outages here. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
TUOLUMNE, Calif. —Tens of thousands of residents were without power across Tuolumne County due to an explosion near a power station, according to the sheriff’s office. No injuries have been reported.
Just after 5 p.m. Friday, the PG&E outage map showed nearly 30,000 without power across the county, including 1,957 households in Sonora and 27,773 households in unincorporated areas. By 6 p.m., power had been restored to about half the affected population, with 15,420 customers without power across the county.
By 7 p.m., power was restored for most customers in the area.
The Tuolumne County Fire Department initially said its crews responded to a reported lithium-ion battery explosion at Pacific Ultrapower near Chinese Camp around 4:15 p.m. However, the sheriff’s office later said crews determined the explosion was connected with a transformer at ENGIE, a facility neighboring Ultrapower.
In a news release, ENGIE said its Sierra Battery Storage facility experienced an electrical issue around 4 p.m. and some electrical circuits and equipment tripped at the facility. The company said there was no fire on-site.
Steve Gross, president of Jamestown Energy, told KCRA 3 that the incident was not at their facility, but at an adjacent facility where there is an energy storage project with lithium-ion batteries. Gross said that the incident knocked out the main line, affecting Jamestown Energy’s ability to send out power.
Cal Fire crews also responded this evening. A battalion chief said they are always on high alert when they hear the word “explosion.”
“We were told that there was black smoke and an explosion. And after investigating, we noticed that it was a transformer that had exploded. And from there we just mitigated the cause of it,” Jeffrey Cox, Cal Fire TCU battalion chief, said.
Although there was no fire when they arrived, Cox said, the crews assisted in evacuating the facility to ensure everyone’s safety.
The fire department said localized evacuations of the plant were conducted and all employees are accounted for. Those evacuation orders have since been lifted.
The extent of the damage is unclear.
The Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office said there were no road closures or additional evacuations associated with the incident, but urged the public to avoid the area.
The outage map shows the power loss was reported just before 4:30 p.m. Friday.
ENGIE said its facility has been disconnected from the grid while technical experts are investigating the cause of the incident.
KCRA 3 has reached out to PG&E for more information.
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
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Power outage affects Broadway Burlingame retail district and surrounding neighborhoods
A power outage in Burlingame was affecting a major downtown shopping district and surrounding neighborhoods Wednesday, authorities said.
Pacific Gas and Electric indicated on an outage map that power was out to about 930 customers in the area. The outage affected the busy Broadway Burlingame retail district, as well as the Burlingame Gate, Burlingame Terrace, and Burlingame Gardens neighborhoods.
Burlingame police said Broadway was closed between Chula Vista and Carolan avenues in the area of California Avenue and the Broadway Caltrain station.
KPIX
There have been a series of outages in downtown Burlingame over the last several days, according to business owners. Multiple portable generators have been placed around the downtown area.
Earlier Wednesday, the Central County Fire Department said its crews were called out to the area to check on a possible gas leak.
PG&E has not yet indicated what caused Wednesday’s outage.
This is a breaking news update. More information to be added as available.
Carlos E. Castañeda
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Hit-and-run crash knocks out power for nearly 400 people in Raleigh
Nearly 400 people were without power early Sunday morning after a car crashed into a utility pole in Raleigh.
Around 2:45 a.m., a car struck a utility pole attached to a transformer on the 1400 block of Capital Boulevard near the Wade Avenue interchange.
Raleigh police said the driver fled the scene in another car after crashing.
Duke Energy crews were on the scene fixing the pole. As of 6:15 a.m., at least 395 customers were without power. The outage map estimated that power should be fully restored by 2 p.m.
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Storm-related damage, power outages reported across the Bay Area
Widespread storm-related damage was reported across the Bay Area and Central Coast on Thursday, as residents awoke Christmas morning to multiple downed trees, power outages, flooding, and other storm impacts.
Pacific Gas and Electric power outages totaled in the tens of thousands again on Thursday. Some 65,000 people were without power on Thursday morning; the outages were reduced to about 28,500 by nighttime, with about 8,000 of those located in Sonoma County.
PG&E officials said crews had restored power to over 383,000 customers since the series of storms began late Tuesday night, which followed major outages from substation fires in San Francisco and Saratoga.
A flood watch remained in effect across much of the region Thursday. In Santa Clara County, flooding closed two southbound lanes of state Highway 87 north of state Highway 85 in San Jose. The California Highway Patrol said the lanes were closed at about 5:10 a.m. and an estimated time for reopening was not immediately available.
In Sonoma County, flooding closed portions of state Highway 12 and Highway 121 south of the city of Sonoma, Caltrans said. Highway 121 was closed from Highway 116 to Eighth Street East, while Highway 12 was closed from Watmaugh Road to Highway 121. Caltrans estimated the closures would last until about noon on Saturday.
KPIX First Alert Weather: Current conditions, alerts, maps for your area
In the East Bay, flooding forced the closure of a portion of state Highway 24 in Orinda, along with two bores of the Caldecott Tunnel. Caltrans said westbound lanes of Highway 24 at Camino Pablo were underwater, and traffic was diverted off the freeway and to the Orinda off-ramp. In addition, Caltrans said the was also affecting the tunnel’s electrical system, forcing traffic into one lane in each direction in the remaining bore.
The storm also disrupted holiday travel at San Francisco International Airport as hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled. The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground delay program, limiting arrivals to 25 flights per hour and later increasing the rate to 28 flights per hour from Thursday into Friday. Nearly 200 flights had already been delayed as of Christmas Day morning, while only a small number were canceled, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.
Earlier Thursday morning, parts of SFO briefly lost power because of a PG&E electrical incident. A power surge knocked out power in portions of several terminals, two runways, and parts of the baggage system, airport officials said. The outage lasted from about 3 a.m. to about 6 a.m.; however, officials said the incident did not pose any danger to passengers or worsen existing weather-related delays.
Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport and San Jose Mineta International Airport were largely unaffected by the storms.
In Santa Clara County, Lick Observatory said its facility was closed to the public after wind gusts of up to 116 mph were recorded on Mount Hamilton. Officials said the observatory will remain closed until a full damage and safety assessment. In a social media post, officials said the road to the observatory was passable, but there was rock debris and branches in the road, and the wind removed some of the signs near the observatory.
Carlos E. Castañeda
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Saratoga substation fire, damaging winds cause thousands to lose power across Bay Area
PG&E reported several large power outages across the Bay Area on Wednesday as a wet and windy storm moved through Northern California.
The utility company said a fire at its Saratoga substation broke out at about 8:25 a.m., initially impacting about 21,000 customers in Santa Clara County.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the fire. It extinguished on its own before fire crews arrived, according to PG&E.
“We have to do the forensics because the equipment was damaged by the fire,” said PGE spokesperson Stephanie Magallon. “We have to figure out what the root cause was before we can say if it was weather-related or not, but we do know it was an equipment failure.”
At 4 p.m., PG&E said power had been restored to several thousand customers, leaving 18,834 customers without electricity. There were 3,395 without power in the Peninsula, 13,511 in the North Bay, 87 in the East Bay and 1,836 in the South Bay.
The number of customers without power decreased around 7 p.m. PG&E said the Peninsula had 1,807 without power, the North Bay 11,807, the East Bay 364 and the South Bay 2,674, for a total of 16,810, including 158 San Francisco.
By 9 p.m., more residents had lost power, including over 1,000 customers in San Francisco, only four days after a massive outage that left 130,000 PG&E customers in the city without electricity.
Supervisor Alan Wong issued a statement saying in part, “This evening marks the fourth PG&E power outage this month affecting the Sunset District. On Christmas Eve, once again, some of our neighbors are without power. This level of disruption is unacceptable.”
The total number of Bay Area customers without power was 19,319. There were 1,521 without power in San Francisco, 1,625 in the Peninsula, 6,569 in the North Bay, 86 in the East Bay and 9,518 in the South Bay, according to PG&E.
A high wind warning and wind advisory were in effect for most of the Bay Area through Wednesday morning.
Downtown Saratoga businesses on Big Basin Way, including Anchors Fish & Chips & Seafood, say the power went out early, but glad it was restored in time for lunch.
Mei Huang and her husband have served up steaming hot bagels for 30 years at Saratoga Bagels. They didn’t lose electricity this time, but know very well how painful it can be for their bottom line, especially during the holiday rush.
“A lot of food, the whole freezer had to be thrown out. That’s no fun,” said Huang.
Varna Chandar, who’s back home for the holidays, says her electricity in San Francisco got knocked out last weekend. She’s hoping the next windstorm doesn’t shut off the Christmas lights.
“It would be really sad if the power is out during Christmas Day or even today during Christmas Eve, because me and my family and friends are planning to do a lot of things at home,” said Chandar.
Small businesses like Saratoga Bagels are banking on the power to stay on.
“We want to make sure we’re open every day, because I see a lot of people coming back from home,” said Huang.
PG&E said the investigation into the fire at the Saratoga substation was ongoing.
Cecilio Padilla
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Northern California live storm updates: Lightning strikes; flooding prompts evacuation warnings
A storm that moved into Northern California overnight is resulting in power outages, flooded roads and downed tree limbs.The KCRA 3 weather team issued an Alert Day for both Wednesday and Thursday, which indicates that conditions could be a risk to public safety.Snowy conditions can also lead to chain controls. When they are in effect, all vehicles except those with four-wheel drive and snow tires equipped are required to install chains. Also, the speed limit for Interstate 80 is reduced to 30 mph, while the limit is 25 mph on Highway 50.Find the full forecast here.Track power outages here.We are tracking live weather updates as we receive them. Live updates 6:30 p.m.: Traffic is being held on I-80 in both directions at Doner Summit do to multiple spinouts, Caltrans said. 5:15 p.m.: A tree fell on a home in Carmichael on Wednesday. The people who lived there were out of town and no one was hurt.5 p.m.: A flash flood warning has been issued by the National Weather Service for a portion of the Sacramento area. People are being asked to be cautious of flooded roads, creeks and streams as well as poor drainage areas. The warning is expected to last until 7:30 p.m.4:50 p.m.: About 344 SMUD customers are without power, according to the utility’s outage map.See the map here. 4 p.m.: The National Weather Service has issued a special weather statement for the Sacramento area. Until about 4:45 p.m., pea-sized hail and winds of about 30 miles per hour are expected. 3:15 p.m.: Evacuation warnings are in effect for the Cosgrove Creek area near Valley Springs and La Contenta due to rising water levels , according to the Calaveras County Office of Emergency Services. Under an evacuation warning residents are advised of a potential threat to life and property. There is a possibility for an evacuation order.To see the evacuation warning zone on a map, click here. 12:30 p.m.: Traffic on westbound I-80 is being turned around at Truckee and Donner Lake Interchange due to multiple spinouts.12 p.m.: As of this writing, there are at least 96,000 utility customers across California without power, according to a state dashboard.In San Joaquin County, PG&E said about 2,600 customers in the Stockton area lost their power.11 a.m.: The Imaginarium at Cal Expo is closed Wednesday because of wind-related concerns.10:57 a.m.: The California Highway Patrol Yuba-Sutter division shared video of a water rescue that happened midnight Wednesday near Highway 113.10:27 a.m.: The Amador Fire Department said it is at Westover Field on Airport Road in Sutter Creek, filling sandbags for anyone who needs them.10 a.m.: As of this writing, there are roughly 123,000 utility customers across California without power.9:55 a.m.: These are chain controls as of this writing.Interstate 80Eastbound traffic: Chains are required from Kingvale to Truckee.Westbound traffic: Chains are required from the Donner Lake Interchange to 4.7 miles west of Kingvale. Traffic is being turned around at Truckee and Donner Lake Interchange due to multiple spinouts.Highway 50Chains are required from Twin Bridges to Meyers.9:51 a.m.: The Grass Valley Fire Department shared pictures of its firefighters handling storm-related issues in the city.9:45 a.m.: Pacific Gas & Electric Co. talked about its efforts in addressing storm-related damages.9:15 a.m.: The Sacramento Municipal Utility District spoke about what it’s doing to address storm-related damages.9 a.m.: See our updated forecast in the video player below.7:55 a.m.: The California Highway Patrol said at least one person died in what appears to be a weather-related crash.CHP said a vehicle crashed into a telephone pole at Franklin Boulevard and Point Pleasant Road. That was reported shortly before 6 a.m.7:40 a.m.: See weather highlights from our 7 a.m. newscast in the video player below.7:10 a.m.: The California Highway Patrol East Sacramento division said its officers are responding to multiple reports of vehicle spinouts amid stormy conditions.7 a.m.: A statewide dashboard indicates that at least 138,000 utility customers across California are without power.6:55 a.m.: These are chain controls for mountain travel as of this writing. When chain controls are in effect, chains are required on all vehicles except those with four-wheel drive and snow tires equipped.Also, the speed limit is reduced with chain controls. On Interstate 80, the speed limit is 30 mph, while Highway 50’s speed limit is 25 mph.Interstate 80Chains required from Kingvale in Placer County to Truckee in Nevada County.Highway 50Chains are required from Twin Bridges to Meyers.6:20 a.m.: Traffic expert Brian Hickey observed flooding along Interstate 80 at Norwood Avenue. Motorists were seen driving through the flooding.6 a.m.: See weather highlights from our 6 a.m. newscast in the video player below.4 a.m.: KCRA 3 spotted a tree that fell on a home along Cedarhurst Way in the Carmichael area of Sacramento County.REAL-TIME TRAFFIC MAPClick here to see our interactive traffic map.TRACK INTERACTIVE, DOPPLER RADARClick here to see our interactive radar.DOWNLOAD OUR APP FOR THE LATESTHere is where you can download our app.Follow our KCRA weather team on social mediaMeteorologist Tamara Berg on Facebook and X.Meteorologist Dirk Verdoorn on FacebookMeteorologist/Climate Reporter Heather Waldman on Facebook and X.Meteorologist Kelly Curran on X.Meteorologist Ophelia Young on Facebook and X.Watch our forecasts on TV or onlineHere’s where to find our latest video forecast. You can also watch a livestream of our latest newscast here. The banner on our website turns red when we’re live.We’re also streaming on the Very Local app for Roku, Apple TV or Amazon Fire TV.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —A storm that moved into Northern California overnight is resulting in power outages, flooded roads and downed tree limbs.
The KCRA 3 weather team issued an Alert Day for both Wednesday and Thursday, which indicates that conditions could be a risk to public safety.
Snowy conditions can also lead to chain controls. When they are in effect, all vehicles except those with four-wheel drive and snow tires equipped are required to install chains. Also, the speed limit for Interstate 80 is reduced to 30 mph, while the limit is 25 mph on Highway 50.
We are tracking live weather updates as we receive them.
Live updates
6:30 p.m.: Traffic is being held on I-80 in both directions at Doner Summit do to multiple spinouts, Caltrans said.
5:15 p.m.: A tree fell on a home in Carmichael on Wednesday. The people who lived there were out of town and no one was hurt.
5 p.m.: A flash flood warning has been issued by the National Weather Service for a portion of the Sacramento area. People are being asked to be cautious of flooded roads, creeks and streams as well as poor drainage areas. The warning is expected to last until 7:30 p.m.
This content is imported from Twitter.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.4:50 p.m.: About 344 SMUD customers are without power, according to the utility’s outage map.
See the map here.
4 p.m.: The National Weather Service has issued a special weather statement for the Sacramento area. Until about 4:45 p.m., pea-sized hail and winds of about 30 miles per hour are expected.
This content is imported from Twitter.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.3:15 p.m.: Evacuation warnings are in effect for the Cosgrove Creek area near Valley Springs and La Contenta due to rising water levels , according to the Calaveras County Office of Emergency Services. Under an evacuation warning residents are advised of a potential threat to life and property. There is a possibility for an evacuation order.
To see the evacuation warning zone on a map, click here.
12:30 p.m.: Traffic on westbound I-80 is being turned around at Truckee and Donner Lake Interchange due to multiple spinouts.
12 p.m.: As of this writing, there are at least 96,000 utility customers across California without power, according to a state dashboard.
In San Joaquin County, PG&E said about 2,600 customers in the Stockton area lost their power.
11 a.m.: The Imaginarium at Cal Expo is closed Wednesday because of wind-related concerns.
10:57 a.m.: The California Highway Patrol Yuba-Sutter division shared video of a water rescue that happened midnight Wednesday near Highway 113.
This content is imported from Facebook.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.10:27 a.m.: The Amador Fire Department said it is at Westover Field on Airport Road in Sutter Creek, filling sandbags for anyone who needs them.
This content is imported from Facebook.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.10 a.m.: As of this writing, there are roughly 123,000 utility customers across California without power.
9:55 a.m.: These are chain controls as of this writing.
Interstate 80
Eastbound traffic: Chains are required from Kingvale to Truckee.
Westbound traffic: Chains are required from the Donner Lake Interchange to 4.7 miles west of Kingvale. Traffic is being turned around at Truckee and Donner Lake Interchange due to multiple spinouts.
Highway 50
Chains are required from Twin Bridges to Meyers.
9:51 a.m.: The Grass Valley Fire Department shared pictures of its firefighters handling storm-related issues in the city.
This content is imported from Facebook.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.9:45 a.m.: Pacific Gas & Electric Co. talked about its efforts in addressing storm-related damages.
9:15 a.m.: The Sacramento Municipal Utility District spoke about what it’s doing to address storm-related damages.
9 a.m.: See our updated forecast in the video player below.
7:55 a.m.: The California Highway Patrol said at least one person died in what appears to be a weather-related crash.
CHP said a vehicle crashed into a telephone pole at Franklin Boulevard and Point Pleasant Road. That was reported shortly before 6 a.m.
7:40 a.m.: See weather highlights from our 7 a.m. newscast in the video player below.
7:10 a.m.: The California Highway Patrol East Sacramento division said its officers are responding to multiple reports of vehicle spinouts amid stormy conditions.
This content is imported from Twitter.
You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.7 a.m.: A statewide dashboard indicates that at least 138,000 utility customers across California are without power.
6:55 a.m.: These are chain controls for mountain travel as of this writing. When chain controls are in effect, chains are required on all vehicles except those with four-wheel drive and snow tires equipped.
Also, the speed limit is reduced with chain controls. On Interstate 80, the speed limit is 30 mph, while Highway 50’s speed limit is 25 mph.
Interstate 80
Chains required from Kingvale in Placer County to Truckee in Nevada County.
Highway 50
Chains are required from Twin Bridges to Meyers.
6:20 a.m.: Traffic expert Brian Hickey observed flooding along Interstate 80 at Norwood Avenue. Motorists were seen driving through the flooding.
6 a.m.: See weather highlights from our 6 a.m. newscast in the video player below.
4 a.m.: KCRA 3 spotted a tree that fell on a home along Cedarhurst Way in the Carmichael area of Sacramento County.
REAL-TIME TRAFFIC MAP
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TRACK INTERACTIVE, DOPPLER RADAR
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Here’s where to find our latest video forecast. You can also watch a livestream of our latest newscast here. The banner on our website turns red when we’re live.We’re also streaming on the Very Local app for Roku, Apple TV or Amazon Fire TV.
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Waymos blocked roads and caused chaos during San Francisco power outage
By JAIMIE DING and MICHAEL LIEDTKE
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Many of Waymo’s self-driving cars blocked streets of San Francisco during a mass power outage Saturday and forced the company to temporarily suspend service, raising questions about the cars’ ability to to adapt to real-world driving conditions.
Social media users posted videos of Waymos as they encountered traffic lights that were off. Some cars’ hazard lights blinked and they abruptly stopped in place, failing to cross the intersection. Others stopped in the middle of the intersection, forcing other cars to swerve around them.
The power outage affected 130,000 homes and businesses in San Francisco, nearly one-third of the customers served by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. It was caused by a fire at a power substation, officials said. On Monday, the utility company was still working to restore power to thousands of customers.
Waymo operates hundreds of robotaxis in San Francisco, but it wasn’t clear how many cars were on the road at the time of the outage. The company paused service Saturday evening and resumed it Sunday afternoon.
The road-blocking problems that prompted Waymo to suspend its service during the weekend power outages revived concerns that city officials raised about the robotaxis periodically coming to abrupt and inexplicable stops before California regulators approved them as a commercial service in August 2023.
Tyler Cervini, who lives in the Mission District, said he was calling an Uber to bring him to the airport since his train station was not operating due to the outage. At the traffic light outside his apartment, there were five Waymos crowding the intersection, he said.
He got into his Uber right outside where all the Waymos were, but his driver “had to swerve through them to pick me up,” Cervini said. “He seemed extremely frustrated by what was going on.”
Waymo said that its vehicles are designed to treat nonfunctioning traffic signals as four-way stops, but the scale of the outage created unusual conditions.
“While the failure of the utility infrastructure was significant, we are committed to ensuring our technology adjusts to traffic flow during such events,” a Waymo spokesperson said. “Throughout the outage, we closely coordinated with San Francisco city officials.”
The company said most active trips were completed before vehicles were safely returned to depots or pulled over.
Philip Koopman, professor emeritus at Carnegie Mellon University and expert on self-driving vehicle safety, said the scale of the traffic disruption was concerning. Autonomous vehicles are generally programmed to come to a stop if they are unsure or confused on what to do and ask for remote assistance, he said.
Koopman said it did not appear to be a software failure in the cars themselves, but an “operational management failure” where the company did not have the capability to deal with so many robotaxis needing assistance at once.
Waymo should have suspended service earlier — as soon as their vehicles started having issues, he said.
“If you have thousands of robotaxis that stop, you have a problem,” he said. “What if this had been an earthquake? You would have thousands of robotaxis blocking the road.”
Waymo, which started as a secret project within Google in 2009, has steadily expanded its operations in San Francisco while also introducing its robotaxis into other California cities such as Los Angeles and San Jose, in addition to other U.S. markets in Texas, Arizona, Florida and Georgia.
In the months leading up to the approval from the state’s Public Utilities Commission, San Francisco’s transportation and fire department leaders flagged dozens of reports about robotaxis coming to standstills, blocking traffic.
Besides inconveniencing other drivers trying to get to their destinations, the road-blocking robotaxis were viewed as a possible impediment in life-threatening emergencies when firefighters and police officers were responding to calls for help.
Waymo’s fleet of robotaxis is on pace to complete more than 14 million rides this year, more than tripling from last year, according to the company.
Ding reported from Los Angeles.
Associated Press
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Colorado power outages disrupt atomic clock in Boulder
Power shut off across Colorado last week as hurricane-force winds swept across the state. In Boulder, one of those outages caused time to briefly stand still.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Internet Time Service Facility in Boulder lost power Wednesday afternoon, disrupting the agency’s atomic clock, spokesperson Rebecca Jacobson said.
The atomic clock, which uses cesium atoms to measure the exact length of a second, is used for GPS satellite networks, data centers, laboratories, aerospace, telecommunications, power generation and other systems that require ultra-precise timekeeping.
“In short, the atomic ensemble time scale at our Boulder campus has failed due to a prolonged utility power outage,” NIST researcher Jeffrey Sherman wrote in an email announcing the outage to users. “One impact is that the Boulder Internet Time Services no longer have an accurate time reference.”
When the outage started on Wednesday, some of NIST’s on-campus time distribution systems lapsed before the backup generator kicked in, causing a four-microsecond delay to the atomic clock, Jacobson said.
At least one “crucial” generator at the facility failed after the outage, according to Sherman’s email.
“For comparison, it takes about 350,000 microseconds to blink or 150,000 microseconds to snap your fingers,” Jacobson said.
As of Sunday morning, power remained out at the Boulder Department of Commerce — which houses NIST, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration — according to NIST’s list of active internet time servers.
The time drift will be corrected once power is restored to the Boulder facility, Jacobson said.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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Lauren Penington
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Power restored to about 110,000 San Francisco customers after widespread outage
About 21,000 San Francisco PG&E customers were still without power Sunday morning after a massive power outage left about a third of the city in the dark on Saturday.
In an update Sunday morning, PG&E said it had restored power to 110,000 customers. Those without power were in the Presidio, Richmond District, Golden Gate Park and small areas within Downtown.
According to the utility company, there was a fire at one of their substations, and it caused “significant and extensive” damage.
“The repairs and safe restoration will be complex,” PG&E said. “We have mobilized additional engineers and electricians.”
There was no estimated time for when power would be fully restored, PG&E said.
In Mayor Daniel Lurie’s update, he said he would be trying to get more information from PG&E on when power would be restored.
“About 20,000 customers remain without power, primarily in the Richmond and Presidio. I have been in touch with community leaders in those neighborhoods and we’re working to bring resources directly to those communities,” Lurie said. “We will continue to push PG&E for a firm timeline on full power restoration. We will continue to provide updates later this morning.”
Waymo suspends service
The autonomous driving technology company suspended its robotaxi services during the power outage.
“We have temporarily suspended our ride-hailing services given the broad power outage in San Francisco. We are focused on keeping our riders safe and ensuring emergency personnel have the clear access they need to do their work,” Waymo said.
Jose Fabian
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