USA NEWS TODAY: Thousands of San Francisco residents woke up in the dark this morning as crews continue to work on a fragile power grid following a massive blackout that crippled the city on Saturday. The outage, which at its peak affected 130,000 Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) customers—roughly one-third of the city—turned the final Saturday before Christmas into a day of gridlock, cancellations, and neighbourhood-wide “mayhem.”
The crisis began with a series of smaller outages on Saturday morning but escalated into a citywide emergency following a one-alarm fire at a critical PG&E substation in the South of Market (SoMa) neighbourhood. By Sunday afternoon, while roughly 95,000 customers had seen their lights flicker back on, approximately 35,000 households and businesses remained in the dark, with restoration efforts expected to continue throughout the day.
The Timeline of a City in Darkness
The first signs of trouble appeared at 9:40 a.m. in the Inner Sunset neighborhood, affecting nearly 15,000 customers. By 10:10 a.m., a second wave of outages struck the Richmond District, the Presidio, and Golden Gate Park.
The situation turned dire shortly after 2:00 p.m. when a fire was reported at the PG&E substation located at 8th and Mission Streets. The San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) arrived to find the “keystone” facility—one of only nine essential hubs in the city—billowing smoke. Firefighters were forced to use carbon dioxide extinguishers to douse the electrical blaze while technicians worked to isolate the damaged equipment.
As the substation was powered down for safety, the blackout cascaded across the city, plunging neighborhoods from the Marina to the Mission into darkness.
“Absolute Mayhem” on the Streets
The timing could not have been worse for a city in the midst of a peak holiday shopping weekend. As traffic signals went dark at hundreds of intersections, San Francisco’s already dense traffic ground to a halt.
- Robotaxi Gridlock: The city’s fleet of autonomous vehicles added to the confusion. Without functioning traffic lights, dozens of Waymo robotaxis were seen stalled in the middle of intersections, unable to navigate the “four-way stop” protocols. Waymo eventually suspended its services citywide to ensure emergency vehicles had clear access.
- Transit Disruptions: BART was forced to close the Powell Street and Civic Center stations for several hours, with trains bypassing the darkened underground platforms. Muni Metro service was similarly crippled, with stations between Embarcadero and Van Ness shuttered.
- Holiday Cancellations: The blackout forced the abrupt cancellation of high-profile events, including the San Francisco Symphony’s live performance of “Home Alone” at Davies Symphony Hall and the San Francisco Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker.”
Mayor Lurie Issues Citywide Safety Warning
In a series of video updates from the city’s Emergency Operations Center, Mayor Daniel Lurie urged residents to stay off the roads as night fell and rain began to move into the area.
“If you do not need to go out tonight, stay home and stay safe,” Lurie said. “We have law enforcement and traffic officers out at major intersections, but with the rain coming and the lights out, the conditions are dangerous.”
The Mayor confirmed that while progress was being made, the damage to the 8th and Mission substation was significant. Interestingly, local officials noted that this exact substation was responsible for a nearly identical massive blackout on December 21, 2003—exactly 22 years ago today.
Current Status and What to Expect
As of Sunday afternoon, PG&E reports that the grid has been “stabilized,” and no further cascading outages are expected. However, the work to repair the damaged substation components is delicate.
- Restoration: About 70% of affected customers have had power restored. The remaining 30,000 to 40,000 customers, primarily in the South of Market and surrounding areas, are expected to be back online by late Sunday evening.
- Safety Advice: The Department of Emergency Management continues to advise residents to keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed to prevent food spoilage and to treat all dark traffic signals as four-way stops.
- 911 Usage: Officials have reiterated that residents should not call 911 to report outages or ask for restoration times. Those lines must remain open for life-safety emergencies only.
As the city enters the final countdown to Christmas, the focus now shifts to a “root cause” investigation. PG&E spokesperson Tamar Sarkissian stated that crews will remain on-site at the substation through the night. “Our crews are working as safely and as quickly as possible to get every last customer back on the grid,” she said.