California faces mega power outage amid wildfire fears

California’s San Francisco Bay Area is in the midst of a massive power outage as the state’s largest electricity provider cut power to nearly 2 million people.

As gusts reaching 70mph raged Northern California, fears of a wildfire outbreak prompted Pacific Gas & Electric to shut off electricity in the area. Residents fear that strong winds in the weather forecast might topple power lines and ignite widespread wildfires.

Alarms of a fire threat were initially sounded over large areas of northern and central California. Now, warnings have shifted to the state’s southern region as the raging gusts moved down the state, The Guardian reports. Major utility companies have warned the public that the weather conditions could force them to cut power in Los Angeles and San Diego. An estimated half-million people could be affected by the power outages.

The daily lives of Californians were also disrupted after PG&E deliberately cut power which forced schools and businesses to close down. This has brought the company a wave of criticism from its consumers and from the state’s governor, according to multiple news outlets.

Earlier this week, PG&E prompted power interruptions that affected around 600,00 people in the San Francisco Bay and the north of San Francisco. Back in 2017, the latter was ravaged by wildfires. In November 2018, a fire caused by an unsupervised campfire devastated the northern region of Sacramento. The incinerated areas included parts of Central Valley and the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. The 2018 fires lead to 85 casualties. PG&E transmission lines received blame for the devastating incident.

Danny Manly
Danny Manly
Danny is a reporter and news columnist for Best in Australia. He covers world news the latest world news headlines and international news including US News and Europe, Middle East News.
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