No timeline for power restoration in La Cañada

Residents of La Cañada Flintridge will be breaking bread by candlelight (or flashlight), as power is still off throughout the city, and Southern California Edison has yet to give the city a timeline for its restoration, according to City Manager Mark Alexander.

Alexander said that Ron Garcia, spokesperson for SCE, had contacted the city in the late afternoon to let them know that work had begun on re-activating one of the city’s power lines.

“They’re working on a main line on the Angeles Crest Highway and they’re getting ready to recharge the lines again,” said Alexander. “Unfortunately, they still haven’t provided us with any kind of a timeline.”

Alexander said that he didn’t know if the line would be activated tonight or tomorrow. In addition, Garcia told the city that only some residents would receive power after that line’s activation, meaning the entire city might not see power for even longer.

Sgt. Debra Herman of the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station said that, fortunately, La Cañada hadn’t had any fires or traffic collisions despite the power outage. She said that residents should drive with extra caution at night, since traffic signals are still not functioning.

“We have not put barriers out there or stop signs out there because we didn’t want them to hit cars or blow away and cause damage elsewhere,” said Herman. “Please slow down because of the wind as well as now that it’s dark.”

Alexander said the city had not received any data on how many households in the city were powerless, but that Garcia had said over 200,000 SCE customers in the area were without power today. Garcia could not be reached for comment.

-- Daniel Siegal, Times Community News

Twitter: @ValleySunDan