New emergency generator installation to prompt street closures in La Cañada on Wednesday

Crews plan to install a 30,000-pound standby diesel generator for potential earthquakes and wind events on Wednesday, prompting upcoming street closures in the La Cañada area, officials said.

The eastbound lane at the intersection of Berkshire Avenue and Woodleigh Lane will close from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., according to Nina Jazmadarian, general manager of Foothill Municipal Water District, the utility that delivers water to La Cañada Flintridge and La Crescenta, as well as the foothills of Altadena and Pasadena.

Woodleigh Lane, starting immediately south of the intersection of Berkshire Avenue and Woodleigh Lane, will close completely for 150 feet. Traffic will be redirected by traffic control personnel at Berkshire Avenue.

Authorities urge drivers to proceed with caution through the windy roads and avoid this route if possible.

Crews will remove the replacement generator at the utility’s Berkshire Pumping Station and the new generator will be lifted above the trees and placed below street level.

The water utility used the generator in the past, during the fall 2011 windstorms when power supplied by Southern California Edison was down for about five days in the area and water needed to pump into the communities, Jazmadarian explained.

“If we have an emergency and the power goes out, at that point, we can go into those standby generators and let the water enter La Cañada and La Crescenta,” Jazmadarian said.

-- Nicole Charky, nicole.charky@latimes.com

Follow on Twitter: @Nicosharki.

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