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Rare Bay Area thunderstorms greeted the Tri-Valley overnight, rousing residents early in the morning on Sunday while also causing several wildfires and power outages in the area.
Firefighters were battling three vegetation fires, totaling 850 acres, nearby each other in Sunol in the area of Calaveras and Welch Creek roads. There was no containment as of mid-evening Sunday, and 10 homes were threatened with mandatory evacuations in place for Welch Creek Road residents, according to the Alameda County Fire Department.
Regional fire crews were also working a collection of fires in the Round Valley area in Morgan Territory near Mount Diablo State Park. Four separate wildland fires totaling 400 acres were ignited around 7 a.m. and were still active as of noon, according to Cal Fire.
Earlier Sunday, firefighters knocked down a 50-acre vegetation fire that threatened a structure after breaking out around 5 a.m. on Arroyo Road in southern Livermore. Cal Fire reported the forward progress stopped around 7 a.m. but mop-up would be extensive due to a eucalyptus grove.
Power outages were also caused by storm or fire damage during the day.
PG&E reported two sizable power outages in Pleasanton (500 to 4,999 customers) on Sunday morning, including one around Sunol Boulevard including Oak Hills Shopping Center that affected the Pleasanton Senior Center — but power was restored there just after 11 a.m. so the city opened its cooling center at the Senior Center from 12:30-7 p.m Sunday.
There were also a couple of dozen smaller outages reported around the Tri-Valley at any given time throughout the day Sunday.
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District issued an air quality advisory through Monday due to wildfires sparked by the thunderstorms.
An excessive heat warning is in effect Sunday as temperatures climbed above 100 degrees again in the Tri-Valley, following high heat on Saturday. The forecast projects triple-digit temperatures again on Monday.
“Please remember to keep hydrated, limit outdoor activities during the midday, and conserve energy as much as possible to help prevent rolling outages,” Pleasanton city officials said.
Meanwhile, there were no rotating power outages implemented on Sunday in the Bay Area, although portions of Contra Costa County along with San Francisco and San Mateo counties were on the California Independent System Operator’s list for a possible one- to two-hour blackout due to concerns over the electricity supply and demand in the state.
Officials have issued a Flex Alert through Wednesday to help alleviate the demand on the state’s power grid during the heatwave, asking residents to voluntarily conserve energy from 3-10 p.m. each day.
Common strategies during the Flex Alert hours include adjusting the thermostat to 78 degrees if safe to do so, avoiding the use of major appliances, closing windows and doors, smart energy use and preparing by charging laptops and other devices in advance.
Editor’s note: Information from the Bay City News Service was used in this report.
