Power Restored To Over 500K PG&E Customers, 195K Still In The Dark

(CBS13/AP) - Pacific Gas and Electric says it has restored power to more than half of the nearly 2 million people left in the dark in Northern California after the utility shut down power to prevent its equipment from sparking wildfires during dry, windy weather.

As of 12 p.m. Friday, PG&E says it has restored electricity to about 543,000 businesses and residences. Another 195,000 customers remain without power. Experts say a customer includes between two and three people.

Areas without power include Plumas, Yuba, Butte, El Dorado, and Nevada counties, where people are on their third day without electricity. Butte County is where a fire started by PG&E equipment last year decimated the town of Paradise and killed 85 people.

ALSO: List Of Schools That Remain Closed Friday Due To PG&E Shutoff

The utility says power also remains out in of Kern County in the southern part of the state's agricultural Central Valley, where strong winds prompted PG&E to cut power on Thursday.

The utility was able to restore power after winds subsided and workers could inspect its power lines.

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