photo credit: NWS

PG&E announced about 15,000 customers in Sonoma and 16 other counties are once again facing preemptive power shut-offs this week, including some on Election Day, due to forecasted high winds and dry conditions.

On its seven-day shutoff forecast, PG&E lists 12 counties where shutoffs are likely Tuesday, including Napa and Sonoma counties.

 Additional counties were added to the watch list for Wednesday and Thursday. On Sunday, the utility notified the customers who may be impacted.

The National Weather Service is forecasting elevated fire weather concerns in the region starting Tuesday, with possible winds of up to 50-60 mph in higher elevations by Wednesday evening.

Lamont Bain, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, tells KRCB that offshore winds and low humidity are triggering a red flag warning starting Tuesday morning through Thursday morning:

"When you have the combination of all of those things, the winds, the humidity, and then you factor in just the overall fuel dryness, that's going to result in conditions that are favorable for the development and spread of wildfires," Bain said.

PG&E officials said it is taking the precaution of shutting off power to avoid the risk of their equipment igniting a wildfire. Only two polling locations could be affected, and the shutoff would not happen until 9:30 p.m. on Election Day, well after the polls close.

One of those is the Calpine Geothermal Visitor Center in Middletown, Lake County.

"We are coordinating with those locations just in case backup generation is needed," said Dave Canny, vice president of PG&E's North Coast Region.

Canny said typically, after the unsafe weather passes, power is restored within 12 hours and many customers get restored within just a few hours.

In anticipation of the event, Canny said they will expect 23 customer resource centers to be set up with charging stations in coordination with the county offices of emergency services.

There are a total of 7,000 Election Day polling locations in PG&E's service area. Impacts may be felt in Napa, Sonoma, Contra Costa, Santa Clara and Alameda counties.