Submitted by the Twain Harte Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors:
The Twain Harte Area Chamber of Commerce recognizes the importance of wildfire prevention. We live and work in the Sierra Nevada, and nobody understands the consequences of catastrophic wildfire better than the communities that live with that risk every year.
But recognizing that risk does not mean we should accept prolonged, widespread power outages without meaningful explanation or accountability.
As PG&E’s latest Public Safety Power Shutoff continues across our region, local businesses are paying the price.
Restaurants and grocery stores could face spoiled inventory. Lodging operators face cancellations. Retailers lose sales. Employees lose wages. Businesses that are already navigating the challenges of operating in a small, rural mountain economy are being asked to absorb yet another disruption.
And for many, there is little they can do about it.
We understand that dangerous conditions affecting electrical infrastructure may exist outside our immediate communities. But that raises important questions.
Why must so many communities lose power simultaneously? What infrastructure limitations prevent more targeted shutoffs? What investments are being made to reduce the frequency, duration, and economic impact of these kinds of events?
And perhaps most importantly, what is being done to support the small businesses that bear the financial consequences?
Public safety and economic resilience should not be competing priorities.
Our communities deserve an electrical system that protects us from wildfire without bringing our local economies to a standstill.
The Twain Harte Area Chamber of Commerce will be seeking answers from PG&E and our elected representatives about this outage, its economic impact, and what can be done to prevent similar disruptions in the future.
We’re also working to document the economic impact of this outage on businesses throughout the Highway 108 corridor. Understanding the full extent of these losses will help us advocate for meaningful solutions, and we’ll be asking local businesses and our communities to share their experiences in the coming days.
In the meantime, we encourage residents and visitors to support local businesses as they reopen and recover.
Our businesses are resilient. We don’t think they should have to prove it quite so often.
-The Board of Directors of the Twain Harte Area Chamber of Commerce
