A PG&E contracted helicopter caused two small brush fires yesterday afternoon when the chopper hit power lines near Calistoga during an inspection.
The incident happened at about 12:43 PM, the helicopter made contact with the power lines causing them to fall and spark the small fires at Highway 29 and Palisades Road.
PG&E Spokesperson Deanna Contreras says the incident cut off power to 8300 customers with a majority getting power back by 4:30 PM.
The helicopter made a precautionary landing soon afterwards with none of the 3 people aboard hurt. Less than five hours later, both fires totaled about two acres and were 50 percent contained, with forward progress stopped.