Rain Forecast; PG&E Prepares For Outages

Updated 2:30 pm

Rain is expected to return this morning, and you can expect to see it for at least two more days.

The National Weather Service is forecasting heavy rain and strong winds Friday morning with rain continuing all day.

More rain and wind is expected Saturday with showers on Sunday.

That's a weather combination that worries Pacific Gas & Electric Co.

Jason King, a PG&E spokesman, said the utility has beefed up its staffing for Friday and has people on call in case the latest storm knocks out electricity.

King said PG&E also has set up a communications command center so it can dispatch people to whatever areas need them the most.

"We want to have everything under one roof so we can respond quickly and efficiently," he said.

As of 2:30 pm Friday outages were relatively few:

1. Two different outages affected 27 customers in El Cerrito
2. 8 customers were powerless in Lafayette
3. 6 customers were blacked out in Martinez
4. Oakland had three and Concord two cutomers without power
5. Fremont, Berkeley and Richmond each had one powerless customer.

King said said residents can get the latest information on outages on the utilty's website. They can also call 1-800-743-5000.

He said residents should have plenty of batteries on hand in case outages are lengthy. He also cautioned people to be careful with candles to make sure they don't catch curtains or other materials on fire.

King added that if you see a downed power line, assume it is live and stay away from it. Call 9-1-1 and let them know the location.

Weather affecting SFO more than Oakland Airport

At San Francisco International Airport, 25 arrivals and 25 departures were canceled this morning. Other flights are seeing delays of up to 90 minutes. Flights to midwest and East Coast airports are affected, with longer delays for flights arriving at Newark International Airport.

An estimated 130,000 passengers are expected to pass through SFO today.

Oakland International Airport had no cancellations, according to airport operations staff.

According to the National Weather Service, rain is moving south from the North Bay this morning and will continue to fall through Sunday, making for a soggy weekend throughout the Bay Area.