Help during and after wildfires

Electric Safety Tips

• Check for damaged household electrical wiring and turn off the power at the main electric switch if you suspect any damage and consult with an electrician.
• Unplug or turn off all electric appliances to avoid overloading circuits and fire hazards when power is restored. Simply leave a single lamp on to alert you when power returns. Turn your appliances back on one at a time when conditions return to normal.
• If you see downed power lines near your home, treat them as if they are "live" or energized. Keep yourself and others away from them. Call 911, then notify PG&E at 1-800-743-5000.
• Use only battery-operated flashlights to provide light during outages.
• Standard wax candles are not recommended. LED candles are a safe alternative.
• Customers with generators should make sure they are properly installed by a licensed electrician. Improperly installed generators pose a significant danger to our crews, and to you and your family.

Be prepared and stay safe. Nothing is more important than the safety of the public, first responders and our employees. We encourage you to stay connected with your county Offices of Emergency Services and follow the directions of your local First Responders. If you are asked to evacuate, shut off your gas and electricity to prevent any further damage.

Gas Safety Tips

• If you or someone else shut off the gas during the evacuation, DO NOT turn it back on. Contact PG&E or a qualified professional to perform a safety inspection before the gas service is restored and the gas appliance pilots are re-lit.
• If you smell the distinctive "rotten egg" odor of natural gas in or around your home or business you should immediately call 911 and then PG&E at 1-800-743-5000.

Gas Restoration

• In order to restore gas service, gas crews must conduct a thorough assessment of damaged infrastructure and on-site inspections at each customer home and business. This process must occur before service can be restored and relighting conducted. PG&E will bring in additional crews to restore gas service.
• It is helpful if customers are available to allow PG&E crews access to their properties in order to inspect equipment and restore service.
• If contact is not made during our initial door to door effort to relight pilot lights, we will leave a contact card so that customers may call us. Customers returning to their homes who wish to have service restored should call 1-800-743-5000.
• NOTE: PG&E employees always carry their identification and are always willing to show it to you. Customers should always ask to see valid identification before allowing anyone claiming to be a PG&E representative inside their home. If a person claiming to be a PG&E employee has identification and you still feel uncomfortable, call PG&E’s customer service line at 1-800-743-5000 to verify PG&E's presence in the community.

Electric Restoration Process

Steps for Safely Restoring Service to a Damaged Structure (PDF, 200 KB)PDF. Opens in new Window.

---

Gas Restoration and Relight Process

• As reminder, PG&E employees always carry their identification and are always willing to show it to you. Customers should always ask to see valid identification before allowing anyone claiming to be a PG&E representative inside their home. If a person claiming to be a PG&E employee has identification and you still feel uncomfortable, call PG&E's customer service line at 1-800-743-5000 to verify PG&E's presence in the community.

Each customer within the fire-damage zones designated by CAL FIRE who needs new or changed service from PG&E will be assigned a PG&E representative to help with new or modified gas or electric service.

New service installations, temporary construction power or other services can be initiated and tracked online through Customer Connections.

For information about building and renovations services, visit frequently asked questions.

Planting after wildfires

To support communities recovering from the wildfires, PG&E may offer customers assistance in cutting down and hauling away larger wood from their property. As recovery and restoration efforts continue, PG&E offers these tips for the long-term enjoyment of trees and plants.

Planting tips

• Avoid planting under power lines or near utility infrastructure such as above-ground transformers
• Call 811 at least 2 days before digging to plant trees, to have underground utilities marked.
• Consider fire resistant landscaping and defensible space planting. For planting recommendations, visit Right Tree, Right Place.