Authorities in San Francisco have issued an urgent plea for residents to remain indoors after a massive power outage left approximately 130,000 homes and businesses without electricity on Saturday, 21 December 2025.
City Plunged into Darkness
The crisis, described as "significant" by officials, began in the city's northwestern neighbourhoods, including Richmond and Presidio. The failure then spread southwards, eventually enveloping areas around Golden Gate Park as daylight faded. Utility provider Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) confirmed the outage impacted roughly 30% of the entire city.
Social media posts and local reports painted a stark picture of the aftermath: darkened streets, unlit Christmas decorations, and widespread closures of restaurants and shops. The blackout caused major disruptions to daily life and public safety.
Widespread Disruption and Official Response
The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management took to social media platform X to warn of "significant transit disruptions" across the city. They advised residents to avoid all non-essential travel and instructed drivers to treat any inoperative traffic signals as four-way stops.
The city's transport agencies were forced to bypass numerous bus and train stations due to a lack of power. Fire officials later indicated that at least part of the blackout was caused by a fire at a PG&E substation located at 8th and Mission streets, which was reported at around 3:15 p.m.
Restoration Efforts Underway
By approximately 4 p.m., PG&E posted an update on X stating it had stabilised the power grid and did not anticipate further customer outages. However, the company could not confirm whether power would be fully restored before the end of Saturday.
PG&E did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Associated Press regarding the root cause of the widespread blackouts. The incident underscores the vulnerability of urban infrastructure and the rapid societal impact of major utility failures.
