California is bracing for another round of outages

Bloomberg

California is bracing for another round of targeted blackouts on Monday as a heat wave continues to smother the region and power supplies run low.
While the state’s grid operator said no outages were planned for Sunday night —sparing the region a third consecutive night of blackouts —the respite may be fleeting. The California Independent System Operator has warned it may not have adequate supplies over the next few days to meet the anticipated crush of demand for electricity to power air conditioners and fans. It has asked consumers to conserve energy for the next four days.
Since last week, millions of people state-wide have been briefly plunged into darkness as the California ISO has called for shut-offs to cope with surging demand for the first time since the 2001 energy crisis. It comes during one of the worst heat waves to hit the state in generations.
The worst may be yet to come. The heat isn’t forecast to peak until Tuesday or Wednesday. By then, the state’s aging power equipment may be pushed to the brink. Transformers —the metal cylinders sitting atop power poles —can malfunction and even catch fire if they can’t cool off at night. During a 10-day heatwave in 2006, California utilities lost more than 1,500 of the devices, with each knocking out one neighbourhood in the process.
Monday and Tuesday “will be quite hot, and there will be a number of records again,” said David Roth, a senior branch forecaster with the US Weather Prediction Center. “It is pretty much the whole West.”
The heat and the blackouts come nearly a year after California utilities intentionally cut power to millions in an effort to prevent live wires from sparking wildfires during windstorms. This round of outages come at an especially vulnerable time, with Covid-19 forcing people to remain at home. That’s left those without power with a difficult choice between enduring the heat indoors and seeking relief elsewhere.
The heat wave gripping the West Coast stems from a stubborn high-pressure system that has centered across the Great Basin that spans Nevada and other western states. It essentially acts as a lid trapping hot air, and there aren’t any indications it’s going to budge soon.