Update: Wednesday Storm Power Outages And School Impacts
Update at 6:55 p.m.: Two new power outages in Tuolumne County impacting nearly 740 PG&E customers. Those impacted are east of Soulsbyville and north of Tuolumne that includes 391 addresses along North Tuolumne Road, and 347 along Ponderosa way and Old Buchanan Mine Road. The utility reports that the latter outage is being attributed to an emergency issue. No cause has been determined for the other outage. Both have no estimated time of repairs.
Update at 5:45 p.m.: Thousands still remain without power in the Mother Lode, but PG&E crews have been making some progress in Calaveras County. Along the Highway 4 corridor between Murphys and Arnold where there had been 1,782 customers without lights that number has dropped to 1,027; in the Rail Road Flat Mountain Ranch area the number has declined from 732 to 492. There remain 506 in the West Point-Wilseyville area.
The larger outages in Tuolumne County include 318 customers between phoenix Lake-Cedar Ridge and Twain Harte, 339 east of Soulsbyville; 107 in the Groveland area and 285 more between Groveland and Coulterville. No causes have been or restoration times have been posted.
Update at 3:25pm: The latest traffic issues are as follows…
The CHP reports a vehicle into a phone pole at Priest Coulterville road and Cuneo Road with the pole down. There’s also a report of a downed tree in the Ponderosa Hills area at Ponderosa Way and Skyline Road.
Update at 3:18pm: The latest regarding widespread scattered outages across the Mother Lode indicates there are still thousands without power.
Still, there are no listed causes or restoration times for the bulk of the larger outages, which in Tuolumne County include 318 customers between Phoenix Lake-Cedar Ridge and Twain Harte, which is a slight improvement; 339 east of Soulsbyville; 107 in the Groveland area and 285 more between Groveland and Coulterville, which is also slightly less than earlier reported.
Among the Calaveras County customers without lights are 506 in the West Point-Wilseyville area; 732 in the Rail Road Flat Mountain Ranch area; and 1782 along the Highway 4 corridor between Murphys and Arnold.
Update at 2:24pm: Here are some notable weather-related traffic hot spots right now.
Traffic hazard areas include Hwy 120 and Old Priest Grade, and Hwy 108 just south of lower Twain Harte Drive. There is also a tree that toppled onto a vehicle on South Fork Road in the Twain Harte area, and a hazard at Fir and Highland drives. There was also a collision reported in the 20110 block of Pine Mountain Drive.
In Calaveras County, a big rig that got hung up on a snowbank turning into the Dollar General lot has blocked vehicles in, and there is a report of an accident on Highway 49 just south of Union Mine Road near the county airport. If you are heading out make sure to check the latest chain conditions on mml.com under the Traffic tab.
Update at 2:15pm:Â Currently there are no listed causes or restoration times for the widespread outages impacting Mother Lode PG&E customers.
The larger outages in Tuolumne County include 588 customers between Phoenix Lake-Cedar Ridge and Twain Harte; 339 east of Soulsbyville; 107 in the Groveland area and 355 more between Groveland and Coulterville.
Among the Calaveras County customers without lights are 506 in the West Point-Wilseyville area; 732 in the Rail Road Flat Mountain Ranch area; and 1782 along the Highway 4 corridor between Murphys and Arnold.
Update at 12:12pm: The latest regarding widespread outages across the Mother Lode indicates there are still thousands without power since this morning.
Currently there are no listed causes or restoration times.
The larger outages in Tuolumne County include 1302 customers between Phoenix Lake-Cedar Ridge and Twain Harte; 107 in the Groveland area and 285 more between Groveland and Coulterville.
Among the Calaveras County customers without lights are 414 in West Point and Wilseyville; 792 in Mountain Ranch; Â and 1782 along the Highway 4 corridor between Murphys and Arnold.
BJ Hansen posted these earlier updates.
Update at 10:25am: Traffic collisions are increasing across the Mother Lode. On Highway 4, just west of Forest Meadows in Calaveras County, the CHP reports that there are multiple vehicles spinning around. In Tuolumne County there is a vehicle that has gone 30-40 feet off the road and into a tree on Lyons Bald Mountain Road. There is a two vehicle crash on O’Byrnes Ferry Road near Wagner Ranch Road and an unknown traffic hazard on North Tuolumne Road near Ponderosa Way. Use extra caution when traveling this morning.
Update at 9:54am: The number of customers without electricity is expanding in the Mother Lode. In Calaveras County, there are 912 without power in Avery, 732 south of Rail Road Flat, over 500 west of Wilseyville, just over 100 east of Forest Meadows and 54 in San Andreas. In Tuolumne County there are 2,759 in the area around Twain Harte, Brentwood Park and Cedar Ridge, 347 in Tuolumne, 150 near Groveland and dozens of others scattered around Soulsbyville, Phoenix Lake and Yankee Hill. Because the outages are so widespread, there is not an estimated restoration time for the various outages.
Update at 9am:Â The Twain Harte Library branch will be closed today due to the snow.
Update at 8:13 am: A new outage in the Avery area of Calaveras County is affecting over 900 PG&E customers along Highway 4. A crew is on scene assessing the situation. In addition there is a new outage in Tuolumne County in the area of South Colorado River Drive off of Longeway Road. 53 customers are impacted. There is also a new outage impacting 29 customers near Soulsbyville. An earlier outage nearby, impacting around 100 customers, has been restored.
Original story at 6:20am: Sonora, CA — Public schools in Tuolumne County are closed all this week, and many of the schools in Calaveras which were planning to be open through today are now closed due to the weather.
Click here to find the school delay section. We’ll update the information as new details come into the news center.
For the latest information from the National Weather Service, click here.
In Tuolumne County there are a total of over 100 PG&E customers in the dark stretching from Soulsbyville to Twain Harte. It is unclear when they will be restored. Late last night there were nearly a thousand without power, and most have now been restored.
There are also two power outages in Calaveras County impacting over 250 customers. PG&E reports one is in the West Point and Wilseyville region east of Highway 26 and Railroad Flat Road. It is impacting 54 customers. Crews are assessing the cause. In San Andreas nearly 200 customers are without power stretching along the west side of Highway 49 and Pool Station Road. The utility notes that damaged equipment is to blame, but crews have not gained access to it.
Both outages in Calaveras began last night, and the company has not given an estimated restoration time for either.
(Tracey Petersen contributed to this story)
