Strong winds blow down trees, knock out power in Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Fierce winds have downed trees, spread debris, and triggered power outages across the Bay Area this morning.
LIVE: Track strength of Bay Area winds
The strongest gusts reported overnight were in northern Sonoma County at 97 mph. San Francisco reached 57 mph overnight. This morning, lower elevations in the region are reporting gusts in the 30-50 mph range.
In Santa Rosa, a giant redwood crushed a cottage near Montecito Drive. The woman who lives there was able to escape with her two small dogs. She actually had a bag already packed after a magnitude 2.7 earthquake around 8 p.m. last night. Officials say the best way to protect yourself in this high wind is to stay inside.
ACCUWEATHER FORECAST: Strong winds across the Bay Area
More than 50,000 Bay Area PG&E customers lost power Tuesday because of a strong, unseasonal wind storm. In the East Bay, power was knocked out to more than 5,000 in Oakland. Power also went out for a section of Lafayette on Mount Diablo Boulevard at Happy Valley Road. The Happy Valley neighborhood has also lost power.
PG&E could not say when the power would be turned on, saying crews are working as quickly and safely as they can.
There were several trees that were knocked down in San Francisco overnight. A tree came down around 11:30 p.m. at 5th and Bluxome which caused a traffic issue. Police came out to guide cars around the tree. Another tree came down at Powell and Sutter and around the same time, this one also blocked the intersection. A third tree landed on a car at Franklin and Ellis Street at 11 p.m. there are no reports of any injuries in all this - just a mess and property damage.
In Milpitas, firefighters say wind helped fuel a fire that spread to two acres. People who live on four different streets were forced to evacuate. The fire broke out just before 9 p.m. last night, on Country Club Drive near North Park Victoria Drive. The residents were allowed to return home about an hour later.
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