Cali Grid Op Declares Rolling Blackouts
Till further notice ..... First 75,000 Californians in the dark ….. developing.
California energy grid operator alerts that rolling blackouts are imminent as heat wave strains supply
First 75,000 Californians now in the dark … developing.
A surfer paddles out at Huntington Beach. Temperatures are expected to reach the mid-90s for much of Southern California and up to 115 in inland valleys and mountains. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
BY GRACE TOOHEY, HARRIET RYAN, ALEXANDRA E. PETRI, GREGORY YEE
SEPT. 6, 2022 UPDATED 5:48 PM PT
California’s electric grid operator issued its highest-level energy emergency alert Tuesday evening — a sign that the grid can’t meet the state’s electrical needs and is on the verge of rolling blackouts.
The California Independent System Operator issued a level 3 alert at 5:17 p.m., in effect through 8 p.m. A level 3 alert is the operator’s final step before calling for rolling blackouts.
“The ISO is anticipating high loads and temperatures,” according to an announcement on the grid operator’s website. “CAISO is forecasting an energy deficiency with all available resources in use for the specified time period. Maximum conservation efforts are urged.”
While the alert is in place, participating customers will be directed by utilities to use generators approved for emergencies, or reduce their consumption of electricity, the officials said.
The agency noted that “electricity demand is currently forecast at more than 52,000 megawatts (MW), a new historic all-time high for the grid.”
Shortly before 4 p.m., officials with Pacific Gas & Electric Co. said the utility had told more than 525,000 customers to prepare for possible rolling blackouts “out of an abundance of caution.”
Ben Gallagher, a Southern California Edison spokesperson, referred The Times to the Independent System Operator for questions on rolling blackouts. He said the utility has been preparing for the heat wave.
“It’s critically important during a prolonged heat wave like this to conserve, especially during the hours of 4 to 9 p.m.,” Gallagher said.
The heat wave is now expected to last through Friday, but the worst of it could be over for the southern half of the state — even as temperatures remain dangerously high.
For much of Northern California, the heat was expected to peak Tuesday but temperatures are predicted to remain well above average through the week, according to the National Weather Service.
By late Tuesday afternoon, the weather service confirmed that downtown Sacramento had set an all-time temperature record. The high of 115 degrees broke the previous record of 114 degrees set on July 17, 1925, meteorologists said.
The weather service office in Hanford reported that as of 3 p.m., “all major weather reporting airports in the San Joaquin Valley have set daily record temperatures.”
A day earlier, Livermore broke its all-time record, hitting 116, one degree higher than the previous record of 115, set Sept. 3, 1950.
In a video posted to Twitter on Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom called the heat across California unprecedented, and warned that the state is headed into the most severe stretch.
This heat wave is set to be the hottest & longest on record in CA for September.⁰
We are now heading into the worst part of it - the risk of outages is real. Your efforts have paid off so far, but we need everyone to double down to save energy after 4pm. https://t.co/XKRYd9EPQI pic.twitter.com/HtVh5DAjQD— Office of the Governor of California (@CAgovernor) September 6, 2022
“The risk for outages is real, and it’s immediate,” Newsom said. “These triple-digit temperatures throughout much of the state are leading, not surprisingly, to record demand on the energy grid.”
He said the heat wave is “on track to be the hottest and longest on record” for California and parts of the West for September.
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