California heat wave: Another flex alert issued
California power grid operator issued its eighth consecutive flex alert
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A flex alert issued by the California power grid operator has been extended through Wednesday evening, marking the eighth consecutive day of alerts.
The alert would run from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. local time, a day after the California Independent System Operator power grid peak demand hit a new all-time record of 52,061 megawatts.
The ISO thanked the state's residents for efforts to reduce energy use at the conclusion of Tuesday night's flex alert and emergency alert.
Rotating power outages were largely avoided after the ISO declared an Energy Emergency Alert 3.
The California governor's Office of Emergency Services said an emergency text alert had resulted in an "immediate and significant drop in energy use, providing some relief to the state’s grid."
A high power station is seen in downtown Los Angeles, Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes / AP Newsroom)
"Conserve energy now to protect public health and safety. Extreme heat is straining the state energy grid," the text message said. "Power interruptions may occur unless you take action. Turn off or reduce nonessential power if health allows, now until 9 p.m."
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A photo illustration shows a background of electric power infrastructure with an Apple iPhone showing an Emergency Alert notification from CalOES urging the public to conserve energy to protect health and safety as the electricity grid is strained du … (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Residents in Alameda, Butte, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Fresno, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Merced, Orange, Placer, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Shasta, Sonoma, Solano, Stanislaus, Tulare, Ventura and Yolo counties received the message.
While there were no rolling blackouts over large areas, two outages were reported in the cities of Palo Alto and Alameda.
Several thousand customers were impacted for about an hour.
The sun sets behind a high power station in downtown Los Angeles Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes / AP Newsroom)
Oppressive and historic triple-digit heat bearing down on the state was forecast to continue, with some relief coming over the weekend.
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The West has been struggling through one of the longest and hottest September heat waves on record.
The National Weather Service office in Sacramento tweeted Wednesday that a new all-time record high of 116 degrees was set at Sacramento City, with numerous others across interior northern California.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.