When a fire erupted at a PG&E substation in San Francisco on Saturday afternoon, more than 130,000 homes and businesses lost power, leaving the city in darkness on one of its busiest shopping days.
The Outage
The outage began shortly after 1 p.m. Saturday, striking the northern part of the city. At its peak, roughly one-third of PG&E’s San Francisco customers were without electricity. The incident was traced to a fire at the substation located at 8th and Mission streets, a blaze that has been blamed for some of the blackouts.
PG&E posted on X at about 4 p.m. Saturday that it had stabilized the grid and that no further outages were expected. Despite the stabilization, the fire’s damage was extensive, and the utility’s response required a complex restoration effort.
PG&E’s Response
PG&E said it had mobilized additional engineers and electricians to help with restoration efforts. In a statement, the company noted:
“The damage from the fire in our substation was significant and extensive, and the repairs and safe restoration will be complex,” the utility said.
The company also added:
“This is a very complex work plan and will require the highest amount of safety focus to ensure safe work actions,” PG&E said. No injuries have been reported.
Crews worked through the night and into Sunday, restoring power to the bulk of the 130,000 customers. As of noon Sunday, Pacific Gas and Electric Co. reported that about 17,000 customers remained without power. PG&E expects to restore power to those remaining customers no later than 2 p.m. Monday.
Impact on the City
The outage coincided with one of the busiest shopping days of the year, and social media posts and local media highlighted mass closures of restaurants and shops. Street lights and Christmas decorations went dark, and traffic signals failed across the city.
The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management used X to warn residents about significant transit disruptions citywide. The department urged people to avoid non-essential travel and to treat down traffic signals as four-way stops.
Waymo, the operator of driverless ride-hailing vehicles, suspended its services during the outage. At least one video posted on social media appeared to show a Waymo vehicle stopped in the middle of an intersection.
Recovery Timeline
PG&E’s timeline for the final restoration is clear: power should be back for all customers by 2 p.m. Monday. The utility’s statement emphasized that the repairs and safe restoration will be complex, and that the work plan requires the highest level of safety focus.
The outage remains under investigation, with PG&E looking into the exact causes and any contributing factors beyond the substation fire.
Key Takeaways
- PG&E restored power to most of San Francisco after a substation fire, but 17,000 customers were still without electricity as of noon Sunday.
- The outage began shortly after 1 p.m. Saturday, affecting roughly one-third of the city’s utility customers at its peak.
- PG&E expects to finish restoring power to all customers by 2 p.m. Monday, citing a complex repair plan and the need for strict safety focus.
- The city’s Department of Emergency Management warned of transit disruptions and advised residents to treat down traffic signals as four-way stops.
- Waymo suspended services, and social media videos captured vehicles halted at intersections during the blackout.
The incident underscores the critical importance of infrastructure resilience, especially during peak commercial periods. As San Francisco returns to normalcy, the city and its residents will likely reflect on the vulnerabilities exposed by the outage.
