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Southern California heat wave likely to last all week, brings threat of rolling blackouts

by in News

Record-breaking heat that baked parts of Southern California on Monday could last late into the week, weather forecasters said, and has left the state’s electrical grid on high alert for possible rolling blackouts.

Officials said as many as 3.3 million households could lose power, starting Monday. Southern California Edison had not scheduled any rotating blackouts for the greater Los Angeles region as of 6 p.m., though grid operators issued a warning saying power outages were likely.

That could leave many without air conditioning right as some parts of the region swelter under heat not felt in decades.

“Another day of excessive heat across SoCal,” meteorologists with the National Weather Service in San Diego said on Monday.

Temperature in several cities broke records. Lancaster recorded a high of 110 degrees Farenheit, and nearby Palmdale saw temperatures reach 111.

The minimum temperature recorded in Anaheim on Monday tied a two-year-old record of 72 degrees. Temperatures in Idyllwild reached 98 degrees, the hottest ever recorded in August in that city, according to the weather service.

The heat, and the high demand for electricity it brings, is leading to the energy shortage, said officials running California’s power grid.

The California Independent System Operator says it will likely order utility companies to turn off power as demand for electricity to cool homes soars during the hottest part of the day.

California ISO CEO and President Steve Berberich said the state is short about 4,400 megawatts, which equates to about 3.3 million homes, and those affected can expect to lose power for about two hours.

  • Elliott Flint, Anden McDearmon and Ezra McDearmon, from left, team up to get heir surfboards to the water in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. With much of the region in a heat wave temperatures at the beach were in the low 80’s. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Tori McKinley hangs out with her service dog, Sully, who dug a hole to get to cooler sand in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. Many people were escaping the heat inland and coming to the beach. McKinley is used to the heat though as she was visiting from Arizona where temperatures in her town were around 110 degrees. Service dogs are allowed on the beach in Huntington Beach, according to lifeguards. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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  • Two surfers ride a wave near the pier in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. With much of the region in a heat wave temperatures at the beach were in the low 80’s. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • People visit the beach near the pier in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. With much of the region in a heat wave temperatures at the beach were in the low 80’s. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A cyclist rides through the pier plaza in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. With much of the region in a heat wave temperatures at the beach were in the low 80’s. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Student Kendyl Fay works on her skills during an acrobatics class near the pier in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. Instructors at the Orange County Performing Arts Academy decided to bring the class to the beach from Anaheim Hills to beat the heat and give the students an end of the summer treat. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A bicyclist approaches the intersection of Yorba Linda and Fairmont boulevards in Yorba Linda, CA, on Monday, Aug., 17, 2020. Southern California is experiencing a heatwave.
    (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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He didn’t say where the outages might occur, which are up to the state’s utilities.

“We are encouraging all of our customers to conserve,” Southern California Edison spokesman David Song said Monday afternoon. “We really just need to shave the peak of demand off. That can mean things like shutting off a light you are not using, or keeping air conditioning at 78 degrees,” he said.

Song said the utility realizes the coronavirus pandemic has created additional challenges — people cannot retreat to movie theaters, libraries, or shopping malls to cool down. “We understand our customers don’t have a lot of options,” he said.

Only the coastal areas will escape the worst of the hot weather that is bringing triple-digit high temperatures in many areas as strong high pressure system sits over the southwestern states. And Hurricane Genvieve off the Baja California coast could throw some moisture into Southern California later this week.

  • Carlos Vargas enjoys rush hour on the Irvine Regional Park pond with his 2-year-old daughter Viviana. They were enjoying a laid back, very hot day with their family on Monday, August 17, 2020. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Carlos Vargas enjoys rush hour on the Irvine Regional Park pond with his 2-year-old daughter Viviana. They were enjoying a laid back, very hot day with their family on Monday, August 17, 2020. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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  • Student Kendyl Fay works on her skills during an acrobatics class near the pier in Huntington Beach, CA on Monday, August 17, 2020. Instructors at the Orange County Performing Arts Academy decided to bring the class to the beach from Anaheim Hills to beat the heat and give the students an end of the summer treat. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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In Death Valley, the forecast for Furnace Creek Visitor Center Monday was 130 to 133 degrees, following a Sunday preliminary reading of 129.9 degrees there,  which will have to be verified before it becomes official, the NWS said.

The system has already brought periodic downpours and fire-starting lightning in the San Bernardino Mountains, with the threat of the same in the Antelope Valley and Los Angeles County mountains.

The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning for the mountains, deserts and valleys of Riverside and San Bernardino counties and inland Orange County, as well as for much of Los Angeles County, including its mountains and deserts.

A heat advisory was posted for Los Angeles County coastal areas and downtown Los Angeles. The warning and the advisory are in effect until Thursday night.

The system keeping the heat in place is not expected to budge until later in the weak, with recognizable relief for some areas not likely until Friday or Saturday for some areas, the NWS said.

Some forecast highs for Tuesday include 97 for Los Angeles; 91 for Long Beach; 110 for Woodland Hills; 102 for Pasadena; 99 for San Gabriel; 100 for Anaheim; 81 for Newport Beach; 103 for Pomona; 109 for Riverside; and 110 for San Bernardino.

The Associated Press contributed to this story