Energy Conservation Key to Help Minimize Power Outages
Like a car engine continuously running, these record high temperatures in the Southland for the second day, with little relief in the evenings, is putting immense stress on electrical equipment. And energy conservation at home and at work through Tuesday is the key to minimizing power outages.
Southern California Edison is closely monitoring temperatures that exceed 110 degrees and has extra crews and staff at the ready to respond to additional outages. As of 7:15 p.m., there are a total of 18,000 customers territory-wide without power due to this heat wave.
SCE has activated its Incident Management Team to support and direct repair crews and resources over the coming days.
“Customers are reminded that interruptions of electric service is possible throughout the day and evening hours due to the extreme heatwave conditions, and conservation of electricity usage is key to helping minimize this occurrence,” said Randy Daffern, SCE principal manager and incident commander.
The California Independent System Operator called a Flex Alert until 9 p.m. Monday and SCE is asking its customers to help ease the burden on the electrical system by conserving energy immediately, especially during the peak times between noon-9 p.m.
As temperatures continue to rise throughout the day, SCE crews are working to restore power to customers who have been without power the longest during this current heat wave.
More than 60 maintenance outages were cancelled for Monday because of the extreme temperatures and will be rescheduled. SCE is also looking at Tuesday maintenance outages for possible cancellations.
SCE is looking at all maintenance outages planned ahead of this current heat wave. Each will be looked at on a case-by-case basis and factors such as public safety and reliability needs will be considered. The duration of the outage and temperatures will also be considered.
“We understand that outages can be difficult on our customers and we will be conducting only those that absolutely have to be done for the safety of the public or to prevent other potentially longer outages that could affect many more customers,” said Daffern.
If outages occur, customers can get the latest information by using the SCE outage map. Outages also can be reported at 800-611-1911. Updates are available at: Twitter.com/sce and Facebook.com/sce.
Conservation Tips:
- Turn off all unnecessary appliances and equipment.
- Use electric fans instead of air conditioning when practical.
- Shut off lights when leaving a room.
- Close drapes and blinds to keep out direct sunlight during hot periods.
- Avoid using evaporative coolers or humidifiers at the same time an air conditioner is running.
- Operate swimming pool equipment and energy-intensive appliances, such as dishwashers and dryers, during early morning and late evening hours.
- Limit the opening and reopening of refrigerators, which are major users of electricity in most homes.
- When possible, businesses should shift power-intensive work processes to morning or late evening hours.
