Sonoma County residents get around power shutoff thanks to solar panels
In the North Bay, many residents still had electricity amid PG&E 's Public Safety Power Shutoffs Friday thanks to alternate sources of power.
PG&E began the shutoffs Thursday evening and projected they will continue through Saturday to reduce fire danger during the current Red Flag Warning. When weather conditions improve, PG&E will inspect power lines and equipment for possible damage then power will be restored when it's safe to do so.
The power shutoffs are currently impacting people in Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma County .
Tim Miller is one of those Sonoma County residents but it's not causing him any issues.
"Theoretically, if no one had notified us, we wouldn't even know there was a grid outage," said Miller.
Miller started building his home in 2000 and he took energy into account. He purchased his property because it is oriented to the southwest and gets maximum sun exposure.
"As you can see now we're getting full charge right now," said Miller, pointing to his solar panels on top of his garage. "All the panels are lit up. The suns high up. We're getting a full charge."
He says he only relies on PG&E during the shortest days of winter, when they don't get enough sun to fully charge the battery. While some of his neighbors are in the same boat, it's not all of of them.
"I feel bad for them," said Miller about his neighbors without power.
We spoke to one of his neighbors off camera who is dealing with no power. They were removing all of the food from their refrigerator and freezer because they don't think it will stay cool throughout the weekend.
Tyre Zander with Cal Fire says these shut offs can be critical to save lives. They are expecting a high probability of falling trees and powerlines because wind gusts are expected to hit 55 miles per hour.
"Wih powerlines, sometimes they get broken off and they fall down to the ground, well when they fall down to the ground and they're still live or still hot they could spark fire," said Zander.
Cal Fire is asking people not to mow their lawns this weekend, or do anything that can cause a spark that may start a fire. Dry vegetation could also contribute to fires growing quickly.
As for Miller, he says as these shut offs have become more and more common, more and more people are prepared for it.
"There's probably more houses with solar in this community, or sub divison whatever you want to call it up the hill, than without," said Miller.
At this time, PG&E expects power to be restored in most of the areas by Sunday at noon.
