PG&E Adds 300 Weather Stations in 2021 to Further Improve Weather Forecasting Capabilities

By: Pacific Gas and Electric Company via Business Wire

November 12, 2021 at 18:37 PM EST

More Than 1,300 Weather Stations Provide Detailed Meteorological Data Year- Round

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced today that it has surpassed its 2021 goal of installing 300 weather stations two months ahead of schedule and completed its long-term goal of installing more than 1,300 total, one station for every 20-line miles in high fire-threat areas, across its service territory. As we head into winter and look to continue rainy and wet conditions throughout Northern California, these weather stations are utilized year-round and will help to further improve weather forecasting capabilities.

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(Graphic: Business Wire)

Data captured by the weather stations such as temperature, wind speed and humidity levels help PG&E meteorologists evaluate where severe weather may be headed and inform utility operational planning. PG&E’s weather stations now provide the company with one weather station for every 20-line miles of electric distribution circuits within Tier 2 and Tier 3 High Fire-Threat Districts, as designated by the California Public Utilities Commission.

“Since 2018 we have installed more than 1,300 weather stations to build one of the largest utility-owned weather stations networks in the world allowing us to track temperature, wind speed and humidity in real-time to better serve our customers and communities,” said Scott Strenfel, PG&E Director of Meteorology and Fire Science. “These weather stations help us to better monitor and forecast severe weather threats and inform our operational decisions.”

These more than 1,300 weather stations across PG&E's service territory are now sending hyperlocal data not only to PG&E meteorologists, but also to analysts and experts in PG&E's Wildfire Safety Operations Center (WSOC). The WSOC is the hub where PG&E detects, evaluates, monitors, and responds to wildfire threats across its service area.

The information from these stations is also viewable by the public at pge.com/weather and is combined with other weather station information and shared with partners through MesoWest.

About PG&E

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit www.pge.com/ and http://www.pge.com/about/newsroom/.