Ahead of strong storms bringing heavy rain and snow to the area, PG & E crews are getting ready. Officials from the power company say they’re on standby to respond to power outages as quickly as possible. The NWS office in Sacramento has issued a blizzard warning and says driving conditions will deteriorate quickly starting today. Some areas will see white out conditions and no travel is advised. PG&E reminds residents to give crews plenty of room and says they’re pre-staging materials and is ready to fire up helicopters, snow cats, and 4 wheel drive to get to hard hit areas. As the storm moves through, remember to never touch downed power lines, use generators safely, use flashlights instead of candles, and make sure your devices are fully charged. Make sure you set aside some fresh drinking water and turn off your appliances to avoid overloading circuits when power is restored. Check PG&E’s online outage center for the latest updates.
The expected rain totals from the storm hitting the North Bay this weekend is higher than previously thought. The National Weather Service now believes one to three inches of rain will fall through Sunday. The most rain is expected in northern Sonoma County. Forecasters say significant flooding is still unlikely. A wind advisory will also be in place for portions of Sonoma County between noon today and ten a.m. tomorrow. High elevation areas could see winds between 25 and 35-miles-per-hour, with gusts as strong as 50-miles-per-hour.
Northern California is about to get buried by an epic amount of snow. The Lake Tahoe area is starting this first day of March under a rare blizzard warning. While it means a lot of fresh powder for ski resorts, those wanting to hit the slopes are being told to wait. The National Weather Service says this is no time for people to gamble with their lives. Caltrans is also pleading for drivers to stay off the roads as travel will be nearly impossible during whiteout conditions. Interstate-80 and U.S. Route 50 are both expected to close this weekend.
Relief is coming for millions of Californians. You’ll be seeing an average of 146-dollars in credits on utility bills in April. This happens twice a year thanks to the state’s climate program which requires polluters to pay for climate action. The amounts range from 32-dollars to 175 for electricity, and 58 to 86 dollars for natural gas. The credits will be applied automatically for customers of California power and gas companies.
Governor Newsom is making it clear that Panera is not exempt from California’s new minimum wage law. His office says there is a rule for restaurants that produce their own bread on site, but that does not apply to the fast food chain. Panera is owned by a Newsom campaign supporter and former high school classmate. A spokesperson tried to calm the backlash yesterday, calling a recent news story absurd for claiming Newsom would help the donor avoid paying workers 20-bucks an hour starting next month.
There doesn’t seem to be an end to California’s insurance crisis. Another company is leaving homeowners with even fewer options, citing “significant and persistent profitability issues” in the state. American National provides coverage for more than 36-thousand policies and will no longer renew them this fall. Allstate, State Farm and others have already stopped issuing new policies.
Lake County Animal Care and Control has decided to suspend after hours on call services, starting today. Officials said they’ve been short staffed, and the suspension will last until they can bring in new staff members and get them trained. Injured animals found after normal business hours can still be taken to a local vet. The office said they’ll have an answering service taking messages for Animal Control officers to respond to the next weekday. Officials stressed the situation is temporary and said they’re in the process of training a new animal control officer and are looking to fill another position.
