Power Outage in Palo Alto, CA

Sub-tropical jet stream aided in advecting sub-tropical moisture plume from over the Central Pacific into the California Coast starting March 9th through the 11th. This led to widespread flooding around the CWA, numerous landslides, sharp rises in rivers in Monterey County, and widespread power outages from downed trees and powerlines due to strong, gusty winds. Widespread wind gusts 45 to 55 mph were reported on the evening of the 9th and into the early hours of the 10th. Heavy rains during the same time flooded numerous streams, creeks, rivers, and roads. 4-7 inches of rain fell across the Santa Cruz Mountains while 5-10 inches of rain fell on the Santa Lucia Mountains.

March 10, 2023

A plume of moisture from the tropical Pacific brought an Atmospheric River to the Bay Area January 26th-29th. This system generated heavy rain rates causing flooding and debris flows over area burn scars as well as 15 to 20 inches of rain in the Santa Lucia Mountains. Mudflows near the River Fire burn scar in Monterey County caused damage to homes, covered roadways, and trapped animals at local ranches. Debris flows near the Dolan Fire burn scar caused an entire section of Highway 1 near Rat Creek to collapse into the Pacific Ocean. This was an unusually cold system for an Atmospheric River resulting in lower snow levels and allowing for accumulating snow as low as 1300 feet in elevation. Additionally, strong south to southeast winds gusted to 60-70 mph across area peaks with Mt Diablo reaching 80 mph. Valley locations were gusting up to 40 mph. Numerous trees fell across the region including into homes and onto cars. Multiple power outages were also reported. It is estimated that the storm caused millions of dollars in damage across Santa Cruz County https://www.ksbw.com/article/emergency-declaration-made-in-santa-cruz-county-for-millions-in-damages/35400060. Full storm summary https://www.weather.gov/mtr/AtmosphericRiver_1_26-29_2021.

January 27, 2021

Lightning. Lightning struck a utility pole in Palo Alto early Sunday morning causing a small fire and causing about 4,500 customers to lose power https://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2020/08/16/storm-brings-fires-power-outages-to-the-bay-area.

August 16, 2020

A low pressure system moving in from the Gulf of Alaska and drawing in moisture from the tropics combined to bring the first atmospheric river event of the winter season to the Greater Bay Area. This system brought widespread heavy rainfall, roadway flooding, and strong winds to the region. Rare Storm Warnings were issued over the coastal waters where buoys reported wind gusts in excess of 50 mph. Bay Area peaks recorded wind gusts between 60 to 70 mph with gusts along the Monterey Peninsula and Big Sur Coast at 50 to 60 mph. These winds caused downed trees and power outages across the area. Additionally, convection associated wit the main low caused severe flooding in the city of Chualar where homes were flooded. and cars were stranded on a flooded highway.

December 02, 2019

An atmospheric river with an associated cold front moved through the region from February 12th to the 15th bringing widespread flooding and debris flows. Multiple mainstem rivers flooded prompting evacuations from local officials. Strong wind gusts caused downed trees, power outages, and structural damage. Additionally, a tree fell on a car causing one fatality and one serious injury on Highway 17 while another downed tree caused a serious multi-car traffic accident that resulted in another fatality as well as major injuries. The areas peaks received upwards of 10 inches of rainfall and widespread wind gusts of 50 to 60 mph were observed. Mount Saint Helena recorded wind gusts of 80 mph.

February 14, 2019

It took @PGE4Me a full day of power outage to even send out a message that it will take them more than 72 hours to… https://t.co/2EFulS3Iw6

@GoldmanLisa - March 15, 2023 19:25

Oh wow power outage in sunnyvale today that cause nearby stores to shut down early. I never hear wind that wild bef… https://t.co/uvYMXgd8Uw

@blazingzakurai - March 14, 2023 22:02

Mountain View, CA (2:37 PM) Grid Power Outage Event >> The Ting Network detected an Electric Utility Grid Power Out… https://t.co/kKtjEhYPom

@grid_events - March 14, 2023 21:45

Sunnyvale, CA (2:34 PM) Grid Power Outage Event >> The Ting Network detected an Electric Utility Grid Power Outage… https://t.co/gJLkSvMbR4

@grid_events - March 14, 2023 21:45

Sunnyvale, CA (2:34 PM) Grid Power Outage Event >> The Ting Network detected an Electric Utility Grid Power Outage… https://t.co/q4Nt9UUZvM

@grid_events - March 14, 2023 21:45