A power spike that ripped through San Juan Bautista in a severe
storm late last month caused thousands of dollars of damage to many
residents’ electrical equipment, and is prompting city council
members to ask that the power company send reimbursement forms to
every resident.
San Juan Bautista – A power spike that ripped through San Juan Bautista in a severe storm late last month caused thousands of dollars of damage to many residents’ electrical equipment, and is prompting city council members to ask that the power company send reimbursement forms to every resident.
During their meeting this week, council members discussed asking a representative from Pacific Gas and Electric to speak about the voltage spike at their next meeting. They also discussed requesting PG&E send a letter to every household, explaining the surge, and that if any of their appliances were damaged they can send in a reimbursement form, said City Councilman Charles Geiger.
“This is a major issue. I think we’ve had it before, but not this bad,” he said. “I want to ask them (PG&E) to tell the council what they’re going to do to help stop the problem and what we can do in the future.”
Power spikes in general are uncommon, and usually only happen to one home or business, said Jeff Smith, PG&E spokesman. PG&E has received 90 claims from San Juan residents so far, labeling this surge a large one and very rare, he said.
Investigators having been trying to discover the cause of the surge for the past three weeks and hope to come up with a definite answer within a week or two, Smith said. If they determine the surge was caused by something the company could have prevented, they will reimburse residents.
“If the end result was the power surge was caused by the weather or it was something out of PG&E’s control, it’s not something PG&E would compensate,” Smith said. “But we haven’t been able to determine that’s the case.”
The spike occurred on Dec. 27, when 50 mph wind gusts ripped through San Benito County, felling trees and ripping apart roof-tops, said City Manager Larry Cain. Around 8:30am a brief spike surged through San Juan’s power lines and then the power went off for about two and a half hours, Cain said.
When it came back on, everything from fax machines, computers, dishwashers, ovens and credit card machines had been either damaged or completely fried, Cain said. He guessed the spike caused between $5,000 and $10,000 worth of damage to private residents and business owners’ electrical equipment.
By the time the next council meeting comes around, investigators hope to have an exact cause tied down. Cain said he’s spoken to a PG&E representative about attending the next meeting but hasn’t solidified it yet. Whether the council will request PG&E send a letter and reimbursement form to every resident is undetermined at this time, he said.
Until a decision is made, residents can pick up reimbursement forms at City Hall or get them online, but Geiger said many people don’t have Internet access or know they can go to City Hall to get one. If the forms come straight to their mailbox he said they’re more likely to utilize the service available to them so they’re not out of pocket hundreds of dollars.
San Juan resident Pauline Wyrick attended Tuesday’s council meeting because she thought a PG&E representative was going to talk about the spike, she said. Wyrick said she hopes someone speaks at the next meeting to address some of her questions concerning any possible future jolts.
Her electric blanket, smoke detector and microwave were all victims of the spike, and a couple days after the shock she sent in a reimbursement form but hasn’t heard back from the power company yet.
But a monetary reimbursement isn’t worth what the electrifying jounce took away from her, she said.
“They valued my microwave at $500, but I bought it 25 years ago. After 25 years it’s part of you,” Wyrick said. “They said now it’s worth 40 cents, but it worked perfectly. I hate this new one.”
In other business:
The council appointed four new planning commissioners at its meeting Tuesday. Javier Mendez and Erika Spencer were appointed to two-year terms, Michael Ostrowski was appointed to a four-year term and Reuben Garza was reappointed to a four-year term.
The council’s next meeting is on Tuesday, Feb. 15 at 7pm at City Hall.
Erin Musgrave covers public safety and San Juan Bautista for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or [email protected]
