Thousands of customers in Santa Barbara County lost electricity overnight after an unplanned PG&E outage hit the Vandenberg Village area late Wednesday. An outage had already affected the same general area Tuesday morning.
Here's what to know
By 3:33 a.m. Thursday, the PG&E outage map indicated the outage had been resolved. As KSBY reported, PG&E logged the outage at 10:46 p.m. Wednesday. It affected 2,411 customers.
By 11:35 p.m., that number had dropped to 299. PG&E estimated service would be fully restored around 3 a.m.
Even when outages are brief, they can still be expensive and disruptive for households. Going solar is one of the best ways to save money on home energy, and Palmetto is running an exclusive offer for Southern California residents that allows customers to save an average of 40% on their electric bills with $0 down.
More background
KSBY has not yet identified a cause for the outage.
That is especially concerning as power outages become more dangerous in a world shaped by worsening extreme weather disasters. Heat waves, wildfires, and severe storms can damage equipment or force shutoffs, putting public health at risk, threatening community safety, and creating economic instability for workers and businesses that rely on dependable electricity.
Lost groceries, interrupted sleep, unavailable Wi-Fi, and the inability to run medical equipment or charge phones can turn a single overnight outage into a financial and safety issue.
What can be done?
With Palmetto's help, the average Southern California resident can save 40% on their electric bills, which can add up to thousands of dollars per year.
Save $10,000 on solar panels without even sharing your phone number Want to go solar but not sure who to trust? EnergySage has your back with free and transparent quotes from fully vetted providers in your area. To get started, just answer a few questions about your home — no phone number required. Within a day or two, EnergySage will email you the best options for your needs, and their expert advisers can help you compare quotes and pick a winner. Solar panels can save you more than $50k over their 25-year lifespan, and EnergySage can help you save as much as $10k on installation. Which begs the question — isn't that worth an email or two? |
That special offer could be especially valuable for homeowners looking for more predictable energy costs, and solar paired with battery storage may also offer added resilience during future outages, depending on the system setup.
Where can I learn more?
These stories examine how power outages, grid strain, and blackout risks are playing out in California and beyond.
• In Northern California, wildfire fears put thousands at risk of planned blackouts.
• In Tennessee, at least 250,000 customers were left without power during a major outage.
• In Washington, tens of thousands were without power following catastrophic storm damage.
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