PG&E Enhances Website & Customer Notifications to Provide More Timely, Detailed & Accurate Information During Public Safety P...
July 09 2020 - 11:59AM
Business Wire
Information will be available in 13 languages;
outage maps upgraded to show impacted areas more clearly
As part of its ongoing commitment to keep customers and the
communities it serves safe and informed, Pacific Gas and Electric
Company (PG&E) announced an improved emergency website and
redesigned customer notifications for Public Safety Power Shutoff
(PSPS) events this wildfire season.
Website Improvements
When PG&E calls a PSPS event due to extreme weather
conditions, customers visiting pge.com will be directed to the
"Safety & Alert Center” website which will provide more
detailed and accurate information as much as two days before the
shutoff.
- The new emergency website was designed with a mobile-first
approach to optimize the experience on mobile devices.
- The new site is cloud based for improved scalability to handle
high traffic levels.
- The new site is currently available in six languages other than
English with more coming.
- The new site is also ADA-accessible.
Improved Tools and Maps
Improved tools include a new “all-in-one” map that combines
three critical tools (address search, PSPS forecasted area maps and
current outage maps) in one place.
- Maps have been upgraded for 2020 to be more precise and provide
more accurate details.
- Last year’s address lookup tool has been redesigned to offer a
text-based “no map” view of current and future outages.
- New address lookup tool will help those on lower bandwidths get
the information they need faster. Customers will also see
simplified content and information that’s easier to read
at-a-glance.
“We asked our customers and stakeholders what are the most
important things that they need to hear from us during an
emergency. We are listening to our customers and acting on what we
hear,” said Laurie Giammona, Senior Vice President and Chief
Customer Officer. “For example, we have improved the emergency
information on our website. Now, when you go to www.pge.com during
an emergency, information is easier to find, more accessible and
user-friendly. We believe that all customers deserve to have access
to the information they need in the language of their choice.”
During the Oct. 7, 2019, PSPS event, pge.com was unavailable for
customers due to the increase in the number of visitors. The
website received more than 30 times the normal volume of traffic.
The new website is optimized to load quickly and has been tested to
more than six times the peak traffic seen during 2019 PSPS
events.
Notification Improvements
Improvements have also been made to PG&E’s customer
notification process before, during and after a PSPS event. The
more detailed notifications will show the date of the shutoff, the
address that will be affected and estimated shutoff and restoration
times. When possible, PG&E will try to notify customers of a
PSPS event via automated call, text message or email two days
prior, the day before, and just before power will be turned off.
After power has been turned off, daily updates will be provided
until power has been restored.
Additional Languages
Reflecting the diversity of its customer base, PG&E’s
emergency website will be available in 13 languages by September.
Currently, the website is available in English, Spanish, Chinese,
Tagalog, Russian, Vietnamese and Korean. Six additional languages
will be available by September to include Farsi, Arabic, Hmong,
Khmer, Punjabi, and Japanese. Customers will have the opportunity
to choose their language of preference for viewing the information
when visiting the emergency website landing page at
www.pge.com/pspsupdates.
When a PSPS event is called, customers with their preferred
language set to Spanish will receive notifications in Spanish. For
all other languages, customers will receive notifications in
English with the option to get to in-language versions. Updates
will also be provided via social media channels, local radio and TV
outlets including multicultural media outlets. Customers can choose
their preferred language for notifications by visiting
www.pge.com/mywildfirealerts or by calling 1-800-742-5000, where
in-language support is available.
Reducing the Risk of Wildfire
A PSPS will only be done as a last resort when the most extreme
fire danger conditions are forecasted to help reduce the likelihood
of an ignition and help keep our customers and communities
safe.
No single factor drives a PSPS as each situation is unique.
PG&E carefully reviews a combination of many criteria when
determining if power should be turned off for safety. These factors
generally include, but are not limited to:
- A Red Flag Warning declared by the National Weather
Service
- Low humidity levels, generally 20 percent and below
- Forecasted sustained winds generally above 25 mph and wind
gusts in excess of approximately 45 mph, depending on location and
site-specific conditions such as temperature, terrain and local
climate
- Condition of dry fuel on the ground and live vegetation
(moisture content)
- On-the-ground, real-time observations from PG&E’s Wildfire
Safety Operations Center and observations from PG&E field
crews
About PG&E
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E
Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas
and electric energy companies in the United States. Based in San
Francisco, with more than 23,000 employees, the company delivers
some of the nation's cleanest energy to 16 million people in
Northern and Central California. For more information, visit
pge.com and pge.com/news.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes forward-looking statements that are
not historical facts, including statements about the beliefs,
expectations, estimates, future plans and strategies of PG&E
Corporation and Pacific Gas and Electric Company, including but not
limited to statements about PSPS events. These statements are based
on current expectations and assumptions, which management believes
are reasonable, and on information currently available to
management, but are necessarily subject to various risks and
uncertainties. In addition to the risk that these assumptions prove
to be inaccurate, factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking
statements include factors disclosed in PG&E Corporation and
Pacific Gas and Electric Company's joint annual report on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2019, their joint quarterly report
on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2020, and their
subsequent reports filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the “SEC”), which are available on PG&E
Corporation's website at www.pgecorp.com and on the SEC website at
www.sec.gov. PG&E Corporation and Pacific Gas and Electric
Company undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether due to new information, future
events or otherwise, except to the extent required by law.
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