A power outage left approximately 50,000 residents throughout East Oakland, as well as parts of Alameda and San Leandro, without electricity on Sunday followingnoon.
The outage also affected BART and AC Transit services, as well as stopped the Fruitvale Bridge drawbridge in Alameda from fully closing. The bridge was stuck in the air at regarding a 45-degree angle for nearly an hour, the Chronicle reported. As of a little following 2 p.m., the drawbridge was reportedly able to descend back down, and traffic resumed.
The outage reportedly began at approximately 1 p.m. on Sunday, according to ABC7. PG&E said that a fire at a PG&E substation caused the power outages for the tens of thousands customers in the region. Oakland Fire Department reportedly responded to a fire at the PG&E substation near 50th Avenue and Coliseum Way midday Sunday caused by a transformer explosion there. The fire was extinguished, and no injuries were reported.
PG&E’s website initially projected that electricity would be fully restored by 4:45 p.m, but as of 5:20 p.m., the outage map still shows a large stretch of homes without power.
Power Outage
AMP is experiencing a major outage due to a PG&E transmission outage. We are attempting to determine cause and when power will be restored. We appreciate your patience and will update as more information is know.— AMP (@AlamedaMuniPwr) February 19, 2023
BART also said on Twitter that its service from the Coliseum to the Oakland Airport was affected.
According to social media, Oakland International Airport is out of power and travelers are unable to go through security.
ABC7 News first reported that one passenger tweeted“Power outage apparently, all of Oakland Airport at a standstill. No one getting thru security for going on almost an hour now.”
Top image via Flickr/Darin Marshall under Creative Commons.
