A statewide Flex Alert has been issued for Sept. 5 as a heat wave impacts the Golden State with blistering temperatures over the Labor Day weekend and beyond.
The alert for Labor Day is the sixth consecutive day that the California Independent System Operator has called for voluntary electricity conservation during peak usage hours, from 4 to 10pm.
ISO said energy demands Sunday were reaching record levels, and residents need to reduce electricity use in the afternoons and evenings to avoid outages.
“Starting tomorrow (Monday), this multi-day event is going to get much more intense,” said ISO President and CEO Elliot Mainzer, in a statement. “We are facing a load forecast of 48,817 megawatts and energy deficits between 2,000 and 4,000 megawatts for Monday, resulting in the highest likelihood of rotating outages we have seen so far this summer.”
“Because of the increasingly extreme conditions, we will need significant additional consumer demand reductions during the hours of 4pm to 10pm on Monday and access to all the emergency tools that the state and utilities have established for an extreme event like this one.”
Officials urged residents to set thermostats to 78 degrees or higher, avoid using major appliances, and turn off all unnecessary lights.
The heat wave is historic for both its temperatures and its duration. In San Benito County, authorities sent out a press release on Sept. 5 warning residents that the local heat advisory has been extended to Thursday, Sept. 8.
Advisories and warnings for hot weather for the Bay Area also have been extended until Thursday evening by the National Weather Service. The region will see the hottest temperatures on Monday and Tuesday, forecasters said.
An excessive heat warning has been issued for the interior Bay Area, where high temperatures are forecast in the upper 90s to near 115, Monday through Tuesday and possibly into Wednesday, Sept. 7. Temperatures in Hollister Valley are forecast in the high 90s through Sept. 8.
Cooling centers are open in San Benito County on Sept. 5 at the Veterans Memorial Building, 649 San Benito Street, in Hollister; and the San Juan Bautista Library, 801 Second Street, San Juan Bautista.
Monday’s forecast for the greater San Francisco Bay Area calls for clear skies and highs in the mid 70s along the coast, 90s in San Francisco and parts of the East and South Bay, and triple digits in the Napa area and inland.
Excessive heat watches and warnings are in effect for much of the Bay Area. Monday night calls for clear skies with lows in the 60s around the Bay.
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