A roaring round of cheers and applause filled Fly Bar in NOPA on Divisadero when the power returned at 8:30pm last night, December 20, after massive citywide blackout that affected about 130,000 homes and businesses.
On Sunday, December 21, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie put out a statement on instagram that about 17,000 people still remain without power, mostly on the west side of the city. According to the PG&E website the Richmond, Presidio, and Golden Gate park neighborhoods are still impacted.
Reportedly, the cause of the two-day power outage was a fire at a PG&E substation facility at 8th Street and Market in SoMa. No injuries were reported at the scene of the fire, as PG&E workers and firefighters worked to put it out and repair equipment. The outage took out traffic lights and littered intersections with malfunctioning Waymos, leading to massive gridlock throughout the city; the mayor and other city officials had urged people not to drive.
It was a big blow to small businesses and restaurants anticipating holiday shopping crowds on one of the busiest days of the year.
The lights went back on in NOPA after going out at about 2:30pm, and there was a similar experience in much of the city: Once people realized the power was out and their devices were no longer of use, they began trickling into the streets.
At Bob’s Donuts at McAllister and Baker Streets earlier in the blackout, the usually bright shop was dark—the only light now came in through the large picture window on an overcast day. Despite many mom and pop stores closing early for the day, Bobs remained packed. Cash-in-hand people came with their loved ones, family, and friends for a sugary treat.
As the sunlight started to dissipate, and the reality of a prolonged power outage started to settle in on many people and businesses, an apocalyptic feeling started to descend. The streets were filled with people using flashlights trying to something still open, navigating around detoured Muni buses and grumpy drivers honking their horns in the darkened streets. Many bars, restaurants, and shops closed early.
NOPA resident Jess Gagne said that she understand peoples concerns about public safety with street lights off and signal lights out, but she’s happy to use the outage an opportunity to connect with her community.
“A lot of people are out adventuring, looking for friends, looking for company because there’s no lights in our houses, which I think is kind of nice. I’ve been out here walking up and down looking for places that might be open, cash only, and Fly is open by candlelight which is really fun. It’s an interesting opportunity for the community.”
Inside the ambient-lit Fly Bar, a Saturday night vibe took hold: music played, and laughter and animated chatter emanated from silhouetted figures. Wielding a flashlight, owner Kevin Kynoch said that while the blackout did slow business down, he appreciates that the power outage gave new people an opportunity to check out his spot, joining the regular customers who came out.
“We love these kinds of nights because it gives everybody a different reason to come in and to see our bar in a different light.” A power outage can be stressful for many but Kynoch said his biggest piece of advice for people is to “just make the best of it.”
For some on the other side of town, now waiting more than 24 hours for power to return, the sense of adventure has faded. Ivan Ayala lives in the Inner Richmond and said he lost power around 2:20pm on Saturday. “I didn’t think much of it since it’s common around my apartment for lights to flicker, but it became apparent that the whole neighborhood didn’t have power.” Later he discovered that the whole city was impacted.
Ayala said that he normally cooks at home so not having power for this long has severely impacted him, “I’m limited to what I can cook and eat, so right now I’ve been eating fruits and small snacks. This might be the longest I’ve been without power since living in San Francisco.”
Ayala has had to use a lantern to help keep himself from being engulfed in darkness. He said it felt strange to see the Richmond area be so dark, since he’s used to seeing it so full of lights this time of year. Uncertain about how long the outage would last, he plans to soak up whatever light he can get on a cold, grey Sunday.
