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The California Independent System Operator (Cal ISO) has ordered San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG & E) to trigger widespread rotating blackouts amid extreme heat that is spiking energy use.
The outages, which affect hundreds of circuit blocks in San Diego County, mark the third day this week Cal ISO has ordered spinning outages statewide.
The outages could affect nearly 100,000 SDG&E customers with a power outage of around an hour, the utility said.
To find out if you are affected, find your circuit block number on your SDG & E invoice and look up the number on this table.
The independent California system operator previously declared a Flex Alert, urging residents across the state to save electricity between 3 and 10 p.m. to avoid overloading the electrical system. The Flex Alert remains in effect until Wednesday.
But when power consumption isn’t contained, Cal ISO can declare a Level 3 emergency and ask utility companies to initiate rotating outages across California.
“While a stadium emergency is a major inconvenience for people affected by rotating power interruptions, it is better to manage an emergency with controlled measures rather than let it cause widespread and more prolonged disruption,” said Cal ISO.
According to SDG & E, to avoid future service disruptions, energy conservation is “urgent”.
“Energy conservation remains essential to avoid the need for rotating interruptions, as well as the duration of outages and the number of customers involved. Everyone is invited to do their part to reduce their energy consumption during this critical time, ”the agency said.
Cal ISO offered a series of tips for saving energy, including:
- Turn off unnecessary lights
- Use of major household appliances before 3 p.m. and after 10 p.m.
- Setting the air conditioner thermostats to 78 degrees or higher
- Use fans and keep curtains drawn
- Reduce the use of swimming pool pumps
SDG&E also recommends that residents have flashlights and batteries ready. Those using electric or battery-dependent medical technologies, such as breathing apparatus, electric wheelchairs / scooters, and home oxygen or dialysis, should be prepared to activate their emergency plan.
You can find more energy saving tips on the FlexAlert website.
SDG & E was ordered to cut power to customers on Friday and Saturday. If an order was scheduled for Sunday, it was never announced.
Customers who were previously affected by outages could experience another outage on Monday, SDG & E.
The last time a Stage 3 emergency was declared in California was during the energy crisis of 2001.
California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized Cal ISO on Monday for failing to plan for power shortages amid the heat wave. In a letter, he asked that the power outages be investigated.
But the president of Cal ISO said they “indicated in filing after filing after filing that the adequacy program was broken and needed to be corrected.”
San Diego County and most of the state were in the midst of a brutal heat wave that sent triple-digit temperatures. An excessive heat warning that was scheduled to expire on Monday has been extended through Thursday in San Diego County.
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