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Fire Weather Forecasted 

Due to current weather forecasts, a Red Flag Warning has been issued for Kittitas Valley. As part of PSE’s wildfire safe operations, we will be turning on system settings that are more sensitive to potential hazards. These sensitive settings will be activated Friday morning and will remain in effect as long as elevated wildfire risk conditions persist.

Enhanced Powerline Settings are designed to help keep you safe, but they may result in unplanned power outages.

This is NOT a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS), where we proactively turn off power in advance of severe weather.

We understand the impact unexpected outages can have on our customers, so we've added additional staffing for our first responders and our operations center. For more information or to report a power outage, visit PSE’s Outage map.

Due to numerous wildfires in eastern and central Washington, air quality across the Kittitas Valley is currently within the unhealthy range. Wildfire smoke can seriously affect health, especially for high-risk individuals. To learn more about how to protect yourself and others, please visit the Washington State Department of Health page on staying safe from smoke.

  

Safety first. Never touch or go within 35 feet of downed power lines because they might be energized. Call PSE at 1-888-225-5773 or 911 to report problems.

Report and track power outages online

Mercer Island electric upgrades

Project updates

As this work is in its early stages, you may notice PSE staff and contractors in the project area conducting fieldwork, such as soil testing or surveying existing infrastructure.

Project overview

The electric infrastructure that serves Mercer Island is aging and needs to be replaced to create a more reliable and resilient power grid.

PSE plans to replace the underwater electric cables that serve Mercer Island, increase the cables’ capacity, and make upgrades to the four cable stations located at each end of the cables (see project area to the right). By investing in these improvements, PSE will:

  • Minimize the risk of outages and unplanned repairs
  • Support increasing electrification and the island’s future energy needs
  • Increase service reliability for Mercer Island businesses and residents
  • Support mobility across the region, including energizing Sound Transit’s East Link light rail line and WSDOT facilities on the I-90 bridge between Seattle and Bellevue
  • Strengthen the system’s resilience against severe weather

To help ensure continued electric service during construction, PSE will install a temporary overhead transmission line along the south side of I-90 before beginning construction on the underwater cable crossings. This temporary line adds redundancy to the electric system, reducing the risk of outages during construction.

Photo renderings

Please note, these photo renderings are for discussion purposes only and may change pending public, regulatory and utility review.

Temporary overhead transmission line (Barnabie-Enatai)

Existing: I-90 bridge looking east.
Temporary: I-90 bridge looking east.
Existing: Looking east from Barnabie Cable Station.
Temporary: Looking east from Barnabie Cable Station.
Existing: Looking west from Enatai Cable Station.
Temporary: Looking west from Enatai Cable Station.
I90 Existing Lines
I90 Temporary Lines
Barnabie Existing Lines
Barnabie Temporary Lines
Enatai Existing Lines
Enatai Temporary Lines
Map of Mercer Island showing island in Lake Washington and including surrounding highways

Project area (Click to download)

The northern cable crossing is located adjacent to I-90 between the Barnabie (Mercer Island) to Enatai (Bellevue) cable stations. This crossing includes both transmission and distribution cables. The southern cable crossing is located between the Flood (Mercer Island) and Quendall (Renton) cable stations and includes transmission cables only.

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Contact us

We welcome your questions and comments!
Please contact:
1-888-404-8773
Major.Projects@pse.com

Learn more

Process

PSE is currently working on engineering and permitting and conducting initial outreach about this project. Throughout this project, we will keep the community informed of our progress, opportunities to engage, and potential impacts.

Chart of Mercer Island electric project timeline

Schedule

Below is our current schedule for construction of each phase of this project. Note, this schedule could change depending on the progress of permitting.

Mercer Island Schedule

Nearby projects

Mercer Slough electric upgrades

PSE is replacing and upgrading several aging transmission line poles and wire located in Mercer Slough Nature Park, just north of I-90 in Bellevue. This project will improve electric system reliability and support the installation of the temporary overhead transmission line, part of the Mercer Island electric upgrades project.

View the interactive PSE projects map for the project location and other details.