Update: Friday Power Outages, Closures, And Sandbag Availability

Update at 10:51am: Tuolumne County Office of Emergency Services Coordinator, Dore Bietz has provided an update on sandbag locations. The sites will be open today (Friday) from 10am-4pm, with the exception of the Jamestown location, which will be open from noon-4 pm. There will be a limited number of pre-filled bags and crews available to assist.

·                Columbia – Airport parking lot @ 10723 Airport Rd (please look for the orange cones)

·                Big Oak Flat / Groveland area – 11242 Wards Ferry Rd (pre-filled only)

·                Tuolumne Fire Station on 18690 Main St, Tuolumne, CA 95379 (also sand only available at 18870 Birch Street or at Parkview Ln and Chestnut Ave)

·                Jamestown – On the corner of 7^th Ave and 8^th St

Update at 7:16am: PG&E reports that there were 26 customers who lost electricity, during the six o’clock hour this morning, in Jamestown, and 12 customers in the Crystal Falls area. There is no estimated restoration time.

Original story at 6am: PG&E warns that power outages will be likely in some areas over the coming days due to the warm storm system passing through the region.

Outages are still minimal in the Mother Lode, as of early Friday morning.

PG&E reports 11 customers have been without electricity since about 10:45 last night around Twain Harte. There is no estimated restoration time.  About 50 lost power at 1:50 this morning in the Valley Springs area, and PG&E is hoping for full restoration by 6pm today.

Any school announcements will be posted here. 

To read the latest on National Weather Service advisories and watches, click here. 

Dodge Ridge and Bear Valley ski resorts announce that they are closed today due to safety concerns (Friday).

Emergency information from the Tuolumne County Office of Emergency Services can be found below:

Tuolumne County Office of Emergency Services and Public Works would like to remind everyone of sand locations. Unless noted below, please bring your own shovel and bags.

·                     Columbia – Airport parking lot @ 10723 Airport Rd (please look for the orange cones)

·                     Tuolumne – 18870 Birch Street or at Parkview Ln and Chestnut Ave

·                     Jamestown – On the corner of 7th Ave and 8th St

·                     Big Oak Flat / Groveland area – 11242 Wards Ferry Rd

Limited Time and locations – We will have a limited amount of pre-filled sandbags and crews available to fill free bags at the following locations 10-4pm on Friday March 10th

·                     Columbia – Airport parking lot @ 10723 Airport Rd (please look for the orange cones)

·                     Big Oak Flat / Groveland area – 11242 Wards Ferry Rd

·                     Tuolumne – 18870 Birch Street or at Parkview Ln and Chestnut Ave

Please note that Bags will be limited to 10 per person so that we can try and help as many as possible.

Also, we would like to remind residents and businesses that if they have not already done so, to clear any snow from their roofs as we have seen in increase in roof collapses due to snow. Rain will only impact and some snow will absorb that increasing the load weight and potential for collapse. Consider removing accumulated snow from your roof to avoid collapse Rain, sleet, and ice add to the weight of existing snow.

It is not advisable for a person to climb onto a snow- or ice-covered roof to remove accumulations. Not only could the additional human weight cause the roof to collapse, but the slippery and unstable roof could be very dangerous. Always exercise caution and safety when considering removing snow from a roof, and, if in doubt, contact a professional.

The best option is to use a roof rake with an extended handle to pull snow from the roof to the ground.

Calaveras County Sandbag locations:

-Arnold Branch Library, 1065 Blagen Rd.

-Murphys Fire Station, 37 Jones St.
-Vista Del Lago Cul-de-sac near Valley Springs Dental, 313 Vista Del Lago
-Mangili Rd. Cul-de-sac at Valley Springs Sports and Fitness, 145 Mangili Rd.
-Mountain Ranch Community Center Parking lot next to the Public Safety Substation, 7869 Whiskey Slide Rd.

-Copperopolis Fire Department, 370 Main St.
-West Point Volunteer Fire Department, 195 Spink Rd.
-Glencoe Maintenance Yard, 16151 Hwy 26 (Open from 7:00am to 3:30pm)
-Jenny Lind Yard 11558 Milton Rd. (Open from 7:00am to 3:30pm)
-San Andreas Rd Yard, 891 Mt Ranch Rd. (Open from 7:00am to 3:30pm)