SAN DIEGO (September 12, 2011)—The electrical grid collapse that cut off power to 2 million customers of San Diego Gas & Electric Co. last week may have resulted in $97 million to $118 million in losses, according to an independent analysis of the economic impact. Some restaurants fared better than others thanks to a little help from Specialty Produce.
The wholesale distributor came to the rescue and helped store huge quantities of food in their generator-powered refrigeration units.
Among the restaurants getting some much-needed help were George's at the Cove, Cucina Urbana, Kitchen 1540 and Pamplemousse, said Specialty Produce owner Bob Harrington in a recent quote. His company also made plenty of dry ice available for his restaurant customers.
"I got a text from Bob, which said, "Let me know if I need to send a truck,'" said Tracy Borkum, owner of Cucina Urbana and Kensington Grill. The restaurants never opened last Thursday because of the outage. Labeling Harrington, "an angel", Borkum said Specialty Produce picked up whatever foodstuffs needed rescuing and stored them until the power came back on.
Borkum estimates a loss of $20,000 in business from Thursday evening alone.
"We’re back to business, and we lost just a teeny bit of product that’s already been replaced," said Borkum. "Thank goodness for Specialty Produce."
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