Faced with forecasts of record-breaking heat that will continue into midweek, a state official urged the public to stick to a flexible warning that was issued on Saturday and extended to Sunday for the fifth day in a row.
The alternative could be blackouts, said Elliott Meinzer, president and CEO of the Independent Systems Operator of California, which manages the power grid.
During the Flex Alert, consumers are asked to conserve energy between 4:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
“When we're in a situation where we're at the end of the system and there's a reliability threat like fire and power plant failure, this flexible consumer demand, this response can make a difference. whether the lights are on or not," Meinzer said during a state emergency management briefing Saturday morning.
By late Thursday evening, power demand had reached its highest level since September 2017, he said.
Some of the generators died due to the intense heat, which led to power outages. Grid operators are also monitoring at least two large wildfires that threaten power lines and power plants in the Los Angeles and San Diego counties.
"The last few days are likely to be a dress rehearsal for much more intense conditions as we head into the peak weekend," Meinzer said.
Warmer temperatures aren't expected yet, National Weather Service Emergency Response Specialist Sarah Rogowski said at a briefing Saturday.
Rogowski said record or near-record temperatures are expected early to midweek, in the 80s and 90s along the coast and in the 100s and 115s in the Central Valley and inland Southern California.
"We're seeing temperatures 10 to 25 degrees above normal for this time of year," Rogowski said. That will be exacerbated by unusually high overnight temperatures in the 90s in parts of Southern California.
"We didn't get this help overnight," he said.
Rogowski said aid will arrive in the North on Thursday, then in Southern California on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning. Even then, the temperature will remain above normal.
Because of the extreme heat and drought, California firefighters are deploying their troops to quickly respond to new fires or extinguish large ones, said Chris Anthony, deputy director general of the state Department of Forestry and Conservation.
"Hotter, drier days are still ahead," says Anthony. "The extreme heat combined with the ongoing drought that we've been experiencing, combined with extremely dry vegetation, is really the perfect material for a fire to spread quickly."
Anthony said 4,346 firefighters have been assigned to active fires in California. Progress on the Caste Road fire, which has burned more than 5,000 acres since Wednesday but was 71% contained as of Saturday, will help draw resources to other parts of the state.
In Southern California, temperatures were near record highs Saturday afternoon in the Antelope Valley and western San Fernando Valley, with slightly warmer temperatures forecast for Sunday, National Weather Service meteorologist Kristen Stewart said.
Saturday's high temperature reached 98 degrees in downtown Los Angeles, 104 degrees in Pasadena, 106 degrees in Van Nuys and 107 degrees in Santa Clarita.
Lancaster measured 106 degrees at 12:30 p.m., two degrees below its daily record. Woodland Hills, also at 106 degrees, is still well below its all-time high of 114 degrees, but is expected to reach 113 degrees on Sunday.
Along the coast, UCLA hit 90 at noon and Long Beach hit 97, several degrees below their record high.
Edison experienced an unusual number of power outages in Southern California, but was able to quickly restore power, company spokesman Ben Gallagher said. He said that due to the heat, the crew was suspended, equipment was placed in storage, and routine maintenance was delayed.
"We continue to encourage our customers to continue," he said.
Californians are urged to reduce electricity use by setting the thermostat to 78 or higher if health permits, avoiding large appliances and turning off all unnecessary lights, officials said.
Mark Ghilarducci, director of the Office of Emergency Management, advises people to stay indoors as much as possible and use malls or community cooling centers for shelter if they are outside. The location of Los Angeles County's 122 freezing centers is on the county's website.
