LOS ANGELES — A record September heat wave is continuing to broil parts of the West and Southwest as parts of California reach 110 degrees and little relief in sight.
Sunday, Downtown Los Angeles hit 103 degrees while Long Beach Airport hit 109 and Burbank hit 110 degrees, the latter two setting daily records and the former the first 100+ degree reading in two years. Santa Ana in Orange County tied a record high of 108 degrees.
San Diego not only set heat records during the day but overnight as well. The low temperature of 78 degrees Sunday morning tied the warmest low temperature on record. Santa Ana only dropped to 80 degrees.
Farther north in the San Joaquin Valley, temperatures that have already baked at near 110 degrees over Labor Day weekend are forecast to exceed 110 degrees on Tuesday and Wednesday, with Fresno pegged to hit 113 on Tuesday which would break the daily high temperature record by seven degrees.
Sacramento has an 80% chance of breaking its all-time hottest September temperature on Monday of 109 degrees, while the city has a 24% chance of tying its all-time record high on any date of 114 degrees on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.
Just under 50 million people in the West remain under some sort of heat alert, with 40 million under an Excessive Heat Warning – a vast majorly in California and southern Nevada.
Parts of northwestern Arizona and much of the Phoenix metro area are also under Excessive Heat Warnings as highs there climb to around 115 degrees.
California power grid strained by excessive heat
The prolonged heat is putting a heavy strain on the region’s power grid as air conditions work overtime.
The state’s Independent System Operator asked residents to limit use of major appliances, avoid charging electric vehicles and turn off unnecessary lights between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. when demand is highest.
PG&E, California’s largest utility provider, is also encouraging consumers to conserve energy any way they can, especially after 4 p.m. Experts say other easy ways to conserve energy is by avoiding laundry, vacuuming, and dishwashing during peak energy times. They say costumers can also set their thermostat at 78 degrees or higher.
The blistering heat with temperatures as much as 20 degrees above average are expected to continue into Thursday and Friday before relief arrives for the weekend.
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