Roughly 110,000 PG&E customers have service again following a major power outage Saturday in San Francisco that left homes in the dark, stalled traffic and shut down restaurants, shops and holiday lighting displays.
PG&E said on social media that the remaining 21,000 without power are concentrated in Golden Gate Park, the Presidio, the Richmond District and small areas downtown. The company said it could not offer a precise time frame for full restoration but would continue to provide updates.
“The damage from the fire in our substation was significant and extensive and the repairs and safe restoration will be complex,” PG&E posted Sunday morning on X. “We have mobilized additional engineers and electricians.”
The fire broke out inside a PG&E power substation at about 2:15 p.m. Saturday, according to the San Francisco Fire Department. It was under control by 4:24 p.m.
The department has warned against using gas stoves, grills and generators indoors, saying power outages can increase the risks of carbon monoxide exposure.
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and the city Department of Emergency Management on Saturday urged residents to avoid nonessential travel and take extra caution on the darkened roads.
On Sunday, Lieutenant Mariano Elias with the San Francisco Fire Department said the outage had not caused a spike in accidents.
“The most frequent calls we had last night due to the power outages was people stuck in elevators and fire alarms going off,” he said. “Those were the bulk of a lot of the calls we had. Other than that, there’s nothing large going on right now.”
Tesla’s driverless taxis continued to operate throughout the blackout.
“Tesla Robotaxis were unaffected by the SF power outage,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote Sunday on X.
Waymo, a rival company that also offers driverless robotaxi services, suspended operations Saturday, citing safety concerns.
