Thousands still without power as winds are expected to calm on Wednesday

After Tuesday was marked by high-intensity winds that left thousands of Bay Area residents without power, the forecast was for calmer winds accompanied by scattered showers of rain and perhaps some snow at high altitudes, according to the National Weather Service.

More than 150,000 Pacific Gas and Electric Company customers were without power as of 10 pm Tuesday, the company said in a blog post. Far fewer outages appear to have been reported on the company’s outage map on Wednesday morning. However, large clusters in the Peninsula and Serra de Santa Cruz remained without power since 6:30 am on Wednesday.

As wind gusts approached 80 kilometers per hour in parts of the Bay Area on Tuesday afternoon and evening, trees fell across the region, blocking roads and downing power lines. One such incident occurred on the western stretch of the Bay Bridge near the Yerba Buena Island Tunnel, blocking multiple lanes and congesting traffic, according to the California Highway Patrol. As of 5 pm, four of the five tracks were released again. The CHP estimated that the fifth lane would remain closed until about 7 pm on Tuesday.

Wow!!!
Downed tree on Bay Bridge blocking Yerba Buena Tunnel – expect delays if trying to enter San Francisco.
This is the top floor towards the city.#kpix @KPIXtv pic.twitter.com/EXRixf4oEZ

— Ryan Yamamoto (@RyanKPIX) February 21, 2023