"Some could be without power until Saturday" by Craig Gustafson, San Diego Union-Tribune 9/8/2011
An unprecedented power outage led to controlled chaos Thursday throughout San Diego County and surrounding areas as up to 5 million people coped with the sudden loss of electricity, and officials said power would be restored in waves through Saturday.
The outage began at 3:38 p.m. after a 500-kilovolt high-voltage transmission line from Arizona to California failed, triggering a cascade of events that then knocked the San Onofre nuclear power plant offline. Those are the two major power sources for the region.
San Diego Gas & Electric said 1.4 million of its customers in San Diego and Orange counties were affected as well as residents east into Arizona and south into Baja California. The power failure led to school and business closures, suspended water service in some areas, flight cancellations, blacked-out traffic lights, silent radio stations and trapped elevator passengers. Public schools throughout the county and several high-education institutions will be closed Friday.
Power came back on in Orange County and small pockets of San Diego County by late Thursday evening, but utility officials said most customers would have to wait until Friday and possibly Saturday as electricity is restored in a cautious multi-step process. The restoration is expected to occur first in outlying areas of the county as roughly 115 power substations are rebooted one by one. Power returned to parts of Carlsbad, Bonita, Eastlake, Escondido, Mission Valley, National City, Oceanside and Otay Mesa as of 11 p.m. Thursday.
While power remains out, authorities recommended residents stay at home and off the roads, conserve water, turn off air conditioners and resist calling 911 unless there is a serious emergency.
There were no significant reports of crime although several traffic accidents occurred throughout the county. San Diego police put more officers on the street to help direct and monitor traffic, respond to calls and keep an eye out for looters who may want to take advantage of the dark.
Mike Niggli, president and chief operating officer for San Diego Gas & Electric, said he found out about the power failure at the same time as everyone else.
"The lights in the office went out with no warning at all," he said. "I started at SDG&E in 1971 and I have never been in a situation like this."
Niggli added, "We will do anything we can do get the power supply back as soon as possible here in San Diego.”
The cause of the power failure had yet to be determined late Thursday although the Arizona Public Service utility company said the outage occurred after one of its employees performed a procedure on the North Gila-Hassayampa transmission line near Yuma, Arizona. Officials throughout the county said there was no indication that the event was caused by terrorism.
Niggli blamed the outage on "operator error" but said an investigation would be required to determine if there were other contributing factors.
“Essentially we have two connections to the rest of the world — one to the north and one to the east — and both of those connections were severed,” Niggli said. “We actually don’t know what happened to the line. All we know is the line went out.”
The power failure threw a wrench in the everyday life of a modern society that is heavily dependent on electricity. Commerce ground to a halt as gas stations and other businesses closed their doors. Residents familiar with breezy San Diego temperatures scrambled to buy ice and other comforts to cope with a continuing heat wave.
Peggy Gimbel, who had to pry open her garage door to get out of her Carlsbad home, called the break from power “peaceful” as she sat at a nail salon. She said the outage shows the fragility of the region’s energy system.
“It’s a fact of life. We are dependent upon things,” Gimbel said. About dealing with the lack of electricity, she said, “You put on your big girl pants and deal with it.”
For some, the outage’s proximity to the 10-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks caused worry.
“It’s the worst day of the year. ... It’s just freaky that is was so close to 9/11,” said Kim Conway, who was shopping at a San Marcos grocery store. Her cart was filled with beer and alcohol as she and her neighbors prepared for an impromptu block party in the dark.
Transportation in all its forms was hit or miss, depending on if the mode required electricity to operate.
Inbound flights continued at Lindbergh Field but outbound flights were halted. Officials advised passengers to check their flight's status on Friday before heading to the airport.
The Metropolitan Transit Service halted trolleys, which require electricity to run, but pressed every available bus into service. Coaster and Sprinter trains continued to run late Thursday as well as Amtrak.
Heavy traffic was reported throughout the county’s roadways as darkened stoplights slowed traffic amid a mass exodus of drivers headed home once the power went out. Gas stations were mostly closed as they had no power to pump fuel and no means of processing transactions.
California Highway Patrol Officer Brian Pennings said gridlock ensued minutes after the outage and there were several reports of drivers illegally running through intersections.
“People are forgetting that when power is out at an intersection, it is a stop sign,” he said. “We’re having crashes because people are blowing through these intersections as if it’s a green light.”
Hospitals around the county continue to operate with backup generators, and officials at several facilities said patients weren’t in any danger.
The outage also led to roughly 70 elevator rescues as an unknown number of people became stranded across the county. Maurice Luque, spokesman for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, said firefighters responded to calls with medical emergencies first and began responding to the rest of those trapped in elevators about 6:45 p.m. Many of the rescues were requested in downtown and University City areas, where there are taller buildings.
Luque cautioned residents to call for help only if there was an emergency.
“Don’t call 911 unnecessarily,” he said. “Legitimate emergency calls can’t get through.”
Another major concern was water. The supply from the San Diego County Water Authority remains stable and safe, but some San Diego city residents may have difficulty accessing water as several pump stations are without power. City officials said some customers could see a significant drop in water pressure and urged residents to conserve.
Not everyone was left in the dark. Several homes, government buildings and businesses, including casinos and The San Diego Union-Tribune, had power thanks to backup generators.
The power failure also left Friday’s opening of businesses and public facilities up in the air as electricity may or may not be restored yet to some areas. The tendency was to preemptively cancel events.
The outage occurred on the final day of a heat wave that sent temperatures eight to 12 degrees above normal. Temperatures shot into the upper 90s and low 100s across inland valleys and foothills, and as high as 114 in the local desert. The weather was even stifling at the coast due to the lack of a sea breeze. By midafternoon, the temperature had hit 89 in Chula Vista and 88 in Encinitas.
The National Weather Service in San Diego said temperatures will be moderate on Friday, rising to the mid-80s and low 90s across inland valleys and foothills, the 80s in local mountains, and the low-to-mid 70s at the coast.
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