Power Outage Interrupts Distance Learning And Telecommuting In Yuba City
YUBA CITY (CBS13) — Thousands of PG&E customers in Yuba City were left without power after transmission lines were hit by lightning Monday morning.
"I'm reminded as to why I will never live in Florida again," David Mariscal said.
It's making the Mariscal family feeling hot under the collar in different ways.
"We planned to get the kids started on distance learning this morning which they started last week. We had work stations set up," David Mariscal said. "So that went out the window. I wasn't able to connect at work remotely."
Tarah McVey's kids also missed out on a day of school but sure felt the heat.
"We're obviously headed out of the house. We're going to try to get in the water at my dad's and go swimming for the afternoon since distance learning was canceled," McVey said. "We're just going to try to make the best of it."
Nine schools in the Yuba City Unified School District also went dark with the outage. The assistant superintendent of educational services told CBS13 the outage is a big disruption since they can't hold instructional time with students.
READ: Jackson Elementary Students Return To School For In-Person Learning
The district said it wasn't worried about the outage since PG&E's initial restoration time was set for around 11 a.m. PG&E said those restoration times were adjusted to later in the afternoon, possibly as late as 6 p.m.
Some are worried about what missing a day could mean for their child.
"The 2020 school year has already been complicated enough. Missing one day; we're playing catch-up. It's going to make things more complicated," McVey said.
While others like Charity Mariscal, a teacher in the district, aren't too worried.
READ: What Do Before And During Power Blackouts
"I think thankfully it was on a Monday. So they hadn't actually gotten their assignments yet today. Because also teachers are working from home and their power is also out," Charity Mariscal, YCUSD teacher and parent, said. "So, they haven't been able to send anything out yet."
Yuba City Unified told CBS13 it'll be messaging parents not to be concerned, that kids can make up missed work and it will connect with students about expectations if another outage happens.
It's another curveball amid the coronavirus pandemic making everyone have to adjust to what comes their way, even unexpected lightning strikes.
