High winds and rain in Morgan Hill overnight and into the morning of Feb. 17 were responsible for downed power lines, fallen trees, widespread electricity outages, mild panic in at least one school and possibly even a structure fire.
The structure fire on Lindo Lane, across the street from Britton Middle School, was reported to local emergency agencies at 9:14 a.m. Feb. 17, according to CalFire Battalion Chief Jesse Morris. Crews responded to find a garage burning, and at least one set of power lines fallen across the property’s backyard, Morris said. It’s too early to say if these fallen lines are the “official cause” of the fire, which is under investigation, but it could have contributed, he added.
“Between the house (where the fire occurred) and school, there was one power pole leaning over and one set of lines on the ground,” Morris said.
Two loud bangs could be heard right before sirens, and then first responders quickly arrived to Central Avenue in front of Britton, according to one bystander who had just dropped their middle schooler off. Morgan Hill police blocked off Central Avenue from Monterey Road while fire engines and crews arrived and worked the scene.
The structure on fire was a garage, detached from the home on Lindo Lane, Morris added. Crews were able to extinguish the fire shortly after arriving, and cleared the scene by 11:10 a.m. No injuries were reported.
The incident prompted Britton Middle School officials to evacuate students from classrooms to the school gymnasium on the southside of campus away from the house fire while firefighters went to work.
Morgan Hill Unified School District officials sent out a phone alert to parents shortly afterward, stating that students were safe although power was out at Britton and some other school sites. A second alert notified parents that “rainy day procedures” were in effect so students would remain indoors throughout the day.
However, parents of Britton students lined up in the rain outside the gym by late morning to sign their children out for the day. Schools are closed next week for President’s Week vacation.
Widespread power outages
The downed power lines also likely contributed to electricity outages throughout town.
According to PG&E’s website, as of about 12:20 p.m. Feb. 17 more than 4,000 homes and businesses throughout Morgan Hill were without electricity. The biggest outage was a large swath on the west side of town, where 2,554 customers were without power. Traffic lights were also not functioning throughout town.
The utility company’s website, pge.com, gives no indication when the power might be restored.
With winds estimated up to 30 MPH, according to a National Weather Service forecast, multiple trees were reported down around town, including one blocking Church Street between Barrett and San Pedro avenues.
Another large tree was down on Vineyard Boulevard in front of the Morgan Hill Police station the morning of Feb. 17.
Weather reports are expecting rain throughout the rest of the day into the evening Feb. 17.
