SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Northern California entered a new round of fire danger Wednesday as forecasters predicted the ongoing dry conditions will be punctuated by bursts of gusty offshore winds through the rest of the week.
Pacific Gas & Electric said it would cut electricity starting Wednesday evening to about 37,000 customers in parts of 15 counties to prevent wind-blown wires from sparking and igniting fires. The outages are expected to last through Friday morning.
Affected areas include the northern Sacramento Valley and nearby areas, the mountains north of San Francisco Bay and Mount Diablo in the East Bay.
PG&E cut power to 41,000 customers during similar conditions last week. No major new fires were reported. The utility said post-shutoff inspections found at least 30 instances of weather-related damage or hazards to electrical equipment.
The National Weather Service said winds were gusting in the North Bay mountains early Wednesday morning and after a brief lull were expected to strengthen during the evening and expand across a larger area.
Southern California is continuing a cooling trend with low clouds and fog pressing in from the coast and may even see light rain or drizzle from Friday into the weekend.
Most of the massive wildfires that scorched California since mid-August have been fully or significantly contained.
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