The utility giant PG&E’s announcement last week that it would seek bankruptcy protection took social media by storm.
#BREAKING: PG&E, the largest utility in the U.S., filed for bankruptcy Tuesday as it faces billions of dollars in potential damages from wildfires in California. https://t.co/cxMvIPn69j
— San Francisco Chronicle (@sfchronicle) January 29, 2019
The Chronicle’s tweet became one of the most-liked and -shared among San Francisco’s Twitter users, with nearly 4,400 local retweets, favorites, quotes and replies as of this writing. But tweets from people in the city — more than 1.1 million posted between January 28 and February 3 — ran the gamut from weather to public safety to an impressive earnings report by a local business.
It can be hard to make sense of the sometimes chaotic stream of information on Twitter, so Hoodline analyzed data from San Francisco’s Twitter users to identify which local events, issues and curiosities got people most interested last week.
Some of the top local tweets had to do with the polar vortex that gripped the Upper Midwest — specifically, San Francisco’s collective relief that it wasn’t happening here.
Right now in the upper Midwest. Yikes... #PolarVortex @KPIXtv pic.twitter.com/PFEoMvmhmB
— Paul Deanno (@PaulKPIX) January 30, 2019
The city’s Twitter users had at least 123 reasons to be glad they were in the Bay Area, rather than upper Minnesota.
123° cooler! The difference between 53° in #SanFrancisco & -70° wind chill in Ely, Minnesota at 7am today. #PolarVortex pic.twitter.com/PdvcDwIOMp
— Mike Nicco (@MikeNiccoABC7) January 30, 2019
With more than 850 local reactions on Twitter, another story that got a lot of attention was a popular food truck’s plans to expand into a permanent space.
After nearly 10 years of being in the Bay Area, Filipino fusion truck Señor Sisig will open a restaurant in San Francisco. https://t.co/cW0GZQrOa7
— San Francisco Chronicle (@sfchronicle) January 31, 2019
Local e-cigarette maker Juul’s $1 billion earnings report was also among the top Twitter news in terms of retweets, replies, quotes and favorites, with more than 790 local interactions as of this writing.
Juul revenue reaches $1 billion, sales of pods hit 473 million. https://t.co/KpUbvKGKoG pic.twitter.com/wJGqFIZx6N
— San Francisco Chronicle (@sfchronicle) January 31, 2019
What else captured your attention on Twitter last week?
It turns out San Francisco police speak a lot of languages, and they made a video about it.
SFPD officers speak over 30 Languages. The #SFPD recognizes the importance of effective and accurate communication between its members and the diverse community it serves. We value dynamic and accurate communication between our members and diverse community we serve. #SF pic.twitter.com/smB8s9V8SL
— San Francisco Police (@SFPD) February 1, 2019
Leading public safety news was this tweet about a drug arrest in The Tenderloin.
Tenderloin Officers working homeless outreach found Jackie Williams, 48, in a tent blocking the sidewalk near 238 Hyde yesterday. Williams, a fugitive in a possession for sale case, was arrested. In the tent they seized another 104 bindles of heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine. pic.twitter.com/Gfm62HoBHw
— SFPD Tenderloin (@SFPDTenderloin) January 30, 2019
Ahead of the weekend storm, the fire department shared this all-important warning about respecting downed power lines.
As the storm is approaching, please be reminded to NOT approach downed wires, stay away from them and call 911 pic.twitter.com/yxh7dW8l4F
— SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT (@SFFDPIO) February 1, 2019
Finally, what’s better than a video of a few seals on a beach in Marin County? A video of dozens of seals on a beach in Marin County, like this one from @nbcbayarea.
And here's your must-see video of the day. Dozens of elephant seals take over Drakes Beach! More here: https://t.co/LRZvmv6nLk pic.twitter.com/aamXXc0r1n
— NBC Bay Area (@nbcbayarea) January 29, 2019