Rolling blackouts for parts of US Northwest amid heat wave

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By GENE JOHNSON and NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The unprecedented Northwest U.S. heat wave that slammed Seattle and Portland, Oregon, moved inland Tuesday — prompting a electrical utility in Spokane, Washington, to warn that people will face more rolling blackouts amid heavy power demand.

The intense weather that gave Seattle and Portland consecutive days of record high temperatures far exceeding 100 degrees (37.7 degrees Celcius) was expected to ease in those cities. But inland Spokane was likely to surpass Monday’s high temperature — a record-tying 105 Fahrenheit (40.6 Celsius).

About 8,200 utility customers in parts of Spokane lost power on Monday and Avista Utilities warned that there will be more rolling blackouts on Tuesday in the city of about 220,000 people with the high temperature predicted at 110 F (43.3C), which would be an all-time record.

Avista had planned for much higher than normal demand but hit its limit quicker than anticipated because of the intense heat, said Heather Rosentrater, the company’s senior vice president for energy delivery, said Monday night.



A parking garage sign shows the temperature at 96 degrees Fahrenheit in the shade, Monday, June 28, 2021, in downtown Seattle. Seattle and other cities broke all-time heat records over the weekend, with temperatures soaring well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 Celsius). (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-government-and-politics-business-environment-and-nature-6a66be20ed86ad18ed131156c9f7a517

[Maxheader]

1. Residential generators are getting hard to find...

Generac is way late on deliveries around here...40 week lead time at some installers...

[csziggy]

8. Beginning of hurricane season in hte Southeast

And heat waves in the Northwest. Plus, I bet people in Texas are getting them that never thought they'd need one before. LOTS of demand!

I'm glad I didn't wait to get my Generac installed last year - but even then it took a month to order it, another month to get the propane tank installed and hooked up, then another couple of weeks for the electrical parts to be hooked up and inspected.

Oh - and the other part may be the chips needed for the smart controllers built in. Generacs are completely self driven - they automatically start when the power does off and the self test by running for five minutes once a week. Ours sends a signal if anything goes wrong. My husband was building a retaining wall next to ours and bumped the power button - even though that turned it off, it signaled our Generac dealer that it was not working. Since he lives behind us, he drove over, checked it out, and turned it back on before we realized anything was wrong.

[C Moon]

2. Crazy!

In Southern California we get those every heat wave now. Or at least warnings of rolling blackouts. They only last 10 minutes, but you never know if the power went out or if it’s a rolling blackout for that 10 minutes.

[AllaN01Bear]

7. actually i live in tuolumne county , central ca about a hour from yosemity np

we get spilled before the citys do since we are rural and not worth to the "public utilites".

[OneCrazyDiamond]

3. Silly people, just turn up the AC.

[leftieNanner]

4. Went to the hospital for a routine exam this morning

They told me that the A/C went out for most of yesterday!

Awful!

Edit to add: I'm in Southern Oregon and it's damn hot here too!

[OneCrazyDiamond]

5. I live at the beach in California.

Temperature here are moderated by the sea. Our issues are sand in the air.

[MontanaMama]

6. 100 today and it's going to be hotter

over the next few days. It’s not normal this time of year.

[cilla4progress]

9. I'm seeing 91 in Bozeman

where I'm headed on Friday to spend a week with my daughter and go to THE BRANDI CARLILE CONCERT ON THE 4TH IN MISSOULA!!!

(Lawn seating).

111 here rn!

[MontanaMama]

11. Oh wow!

The Kettlehouse Amphitheater is just the best place to see a show. Do you follow them on Instagram? They’ve got some new rules regarding food/drinks for this weekend due to staffing/labor shortages. Not a big deal but you should be aware. You’re going to have a GREAT time. DM me if I can help in any way.

[cilla4progress]

12. Thanks

for the tips, MM!

[C Moon]

10. This is a photo from the L.A. port this morning (San Pedro).

I was walking my dog and could have had a jacket (it's a lame photo because my dog was in the foreground, but I cut her out for anonymity).
Regardless, we're getting a very heavy onshore flow for the past few days...at least near the coast (a late June gloom).
Enjoying while it's here.