As part of our ongoing commitment to emergency preparedness and response, CUEA stayed connected to California’s State Operations Center (SOC) throughout its activation for the August 2026 statewide fires, including the Gann and Buzzard fires. As new information came in from Cal OES, we worked to translate it into curated updates for our members, covering fire status, outage and grid impacts, telecommunications and access issues, and utility preparedness considerations.
Throughout the activation, we encouraged members to use the situation to confirm staffing and mutual-aid readiness, backup power and communications capabilities, critical-facility priorities, and coordination procedures with local emergency management and neighboring utilities.
Coordination flowed in both directions. When Comcast was asked to set up internet service for the Timber Fire Incident Command Center, they shared that intel with CUEA, who relayed it to Cal OES to support situational awareness.
This kind of real-time, two-way connection between members, CUEA, and the state’s coordination structure is what allows information to move quickly when conditions change, and it’s a direct example of the cross-sector readiness we’re highlighting all month long for Preparedness Month.
