FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

POLE FIRE CAUSES OUTAGE

ALAMEDA, Calif., February 11, 2005 - A fire on a utility pole at Taylor Avenue and Webster Street resulted in an outage affecting eight customers this morning. The fire was reported at 8:22 a.m. and was extinguished within 8 minutes.

While working nearby on an unrelated project, an observant member of the Alameda Power & Telecom line crew noted signs of a bad transformer. He reported the circumstance to the Alameda P&T Dispatch Center, just prior to spotting the outbreak of a small blaze. The crew quickly deenergized the line and extinguished the fire.

The outage was limited to businesses on the west side of Webster Street, between Central and Santa Clara Avenues.

It is expected that a new replacement transformer will be installed and full restoration of power will be effected by midday.

The cause of the transformer failure is unknown but may have been due to the age of the equipment. An investigation of the incident is pending.