While much of the state is in danger of rolling electrical blackouts due to an extreme heat wave which has stressed California’s electrical system, Turlock residents can rest assured their power will stay on.
California electricity providers instituted rolling blackouts over the weekend — the first since 2001 — as a record-breaking heatwave blanketed much of the West. Hundreds of thousands of people experienced sudden and brief power outages after the California Independent System Operator, which manages most of the state’s electric flow, declared a Stage 3 emergency to help reduce stress on the larger grid.
Since then, Gov. Gavin Newsom has also declared a State of Emergency as demand for electricity to cool homes is expected to remain high throughout the week.
Although temperatures have reached as high as 109 degrees in Turlock this week, Turlock Irrigation District has not been directly impacted by the rolling blackouts experienced throughout the state. According to TID Communications Division Manager Constance Anderson, the District owns and has procured sufficient energy resources to meet the forecasted demand of the current heat wave.
“While the state’s grid connects all power providers, TID is a Balancing Authority – meaning we are responsible to match demand with our generation giving us a greater level of local control on days like today,” Anderson said. “TID monitors energy demand around the clock and always makes sure to have enough energy on hand to serve customer needs. That is especially true on high demand days like these.”
TID’s electrical coverage area stretches from the western-most corner of Stanislaus County in Patterson to Don Pedro Lake, and from the Merced River in the south to the Tuolumne River in the north. Even though TID customers aren’t affected by the flex alerts and can expect to keep their power on during the heatwave, the District is encouraging its customers to conserve where they can to limit potential impacts to TID’s grid. According to Anderson, its system loads are currently “extremely high.”
“While TID did experience some localized outages in our service territory over the weekend, these are not out of the ordinary for an extreme weather event like this,” she said. “The District is staffed appropriately to respond to such outages. We appreciate and recognize the efforts of our crews who are out restoring power in 100-plus degree temperatures.”
Temperatures in Turlock will remain in the triple digits through Wednesday with a high of 105 degrees, then dip down to 98 degrees on Thursday and Friday. Saturday through next Thursday will see the triple-digit weather return.
The fixed bus routes departing from the Roger K. Fall Transit Center (1418 N. Golden State Blvd.) have been established by Stanislaus County as Turlock’s cooling centers during these periods of high heat. All trips are free through Sept. 30 and face coverings are required. For more information visit www.turlocktransit.com.
TID customers are encouraged to visit www.TID.org/outages for updates on localized outages. Readers can find out more on ways to conserve energy at: https://www.tid.org/customer-service/save-energy-money/energy-conservation-tips/.
