A Calfire helicopter hit Pacific Gas
&
amp; Electric transmission lines, causing outages throughout
Hollister and other areas for more than two hours Thursday night,
but leaving nobody injured in the accident, according to a PG
&
amp;E spokeswoman.
Outage caused by Calfire helicopter hitting lines
A Calfire helicopter hit Pacific Gas & Electric transmission lines, causing outages throughout Hollister and other areas for more than two hours Thursday night, but leaving nobody injured in the accident, according to a PG&E spokeswoman.
The Calfire helicopter fighting a wildfire southwest of San Benito County hit transmission lines in the Soledad area, which led to the outage starting at 7:35 p.m. and lasting in Hollister until around 9:40 p.m., said Jennifer Zerwer, PG&E spokeswoman. It wasn’t just Hollister getting hit by the outage, though.
Overall, there were 33,000 customers affected, she said. That also includes customers in Soledad and Prunedale. There were still about 4,400 customers without power until 1 a.m., and 35 remain powerless at the moment in Soledad while PG&E awaits an OK from Calfire that it’s safe to make final repairs in the area.
In Hollister, residential power was out throughout most of the city. Most of the street lights were also not functioning. However, some lights such as ones on Airline Highway and Fourth Street still worked. While most of the businesses were forced to close, Target remained open through backup generators.
Zerwer said initial reports showed no one was injured in the accident.
“We work to restore power as quickly and as safely as possible,” she said.
Hollister Wilcox teacher suspected of student relationship
A 41-year-old Wilcox High School teacher who resides in Hollister has been arrested and charged on suspicion of having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old student, according to the Sunnyvale Police Department.
Sunnyvale police investigators arrested Edward R. Slate on Monday on campus at Wilcox High School, said Capt. Doug Moretto with the Sunnyvale department.
The police captain declined to disclose most details, but confirmed Slate is suspected of having the relationship with the student off campus in Sunnyvale “while the juvenile attended Wilcox.” Moretto declined to confirm whether the girl still attends the high school.
The Sunnyvale department had been conducting its investigation since May, Moretto said. Slate has been charged by prosecutors with “multiple counts” of sexual relations with a minor, he said.
Sunnyvale police worked with the Santa Clara Police Department and the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office on the investigation, he said.
Hollister police arrest hit-and-run suspect
Police arrested a hit-and-run suspect and recovered the vehicle involved about 30 minutes after the accident at Westside Boulevard and Central Avenue that sent a local woman to the hospital with injuries.
Police allege the 22-year-old Hollister man struck a vehicle at the intersection Tuesday afternoon and fled immediately, said Sgt. David Westrick with the Hollister Police Department. The vehicle that was struck spun and ended up in the front yard of a nearby residence.
Police about 30 minutes later recovered the vehicle at Felice Drive and San Juan Road and arrested the suspect, the sergeant said. There were two people in the victim vehicle, but police did not have further details immediately available.
The HPD is preparing to send a report to the San Benito County District Attorney’s Office for potential prosecution, he said.
Below is video from the accident scene.
