A major blackout in San Francisco has left 130,000 without power, disrupting transport and holiday shopping as crews work to restore electricity.
SAN FRANCISCO: A major power outage struck San Francisco on Saturday, leaving approximately 130,000 residents without electricity.
The blackout plunged large parts of the city into darkness, disrupting public transport and causing traffic lights to fail on a busy Christmas shopping weekend.
Utility provider Pacific Gas & Electric Company confirmed it was working with first responders on the outage affecting 130,000 customers.
A company spokeswoman said crews were working to fix the problem and expected to restore power later in the evening.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that fog blanketed parts of the city, forcing many businesses to close during the peak holiday shopping period.
Mayor Daniel Lurie advised residents to stay off the roads if possible, as some traffic signals were out.
“But we’ve got rain coming, it’s night time. If you don’t need to go out, stay home and I’ll keep you posted,” Mayor Daniel Lurie said.
He added that a fire at a substation had caused the blackout, and it was unclear when power would be completely restored.
