California tips towards power outages as heatwave worsens

California's chance of power outages will grow in the coming days, as the state prepares to enter the most brutal stretch yet of an ongoing heatwave.

Energy demand is expected to outpace supply starting Monday evening, and predictions for Tuesday show the state rivaling its all-time high for electricity demand, said Elliot Mainzer, president and chief executive officer of the California Independent System Operator, on Sunday.

“This is about to get significantly more intense,” Mainzer told reporters.

The system operator is in charge of managing and maintaining reliability on the electric grid, a challenging job during hot weather when energy demand soars as people crank up their air conditioners.

Grid managers have several options available before power outages, like tapping backup generators, buying more power from other states and using so-called demand response programs, where people are paid to use less energy. But keeping the lights on will also require Californians to continue conserving as they have been, even as temperatures rise.

Most of California’s 39 million people are facing extremely hot weather.

Temperatures in the Central Valley are expected to be as high as 46 degrees Celsius for several days. In Los Angeles, meanwhile, temperatures topped 38 degrees Celsius.

Drought-hit and aging backups

Energy officials and power companies have been urging people to use less power from 4 pm to 9 pm by keeping air conditioners at 25.5 degrees Celsius or higher and avoiding using major appliances like ovens and dishwashers. 

On Saturday night, the state used about 44,000 megawatts of electricity, Mainzer said. By Tuesday, that's supposed to ramp up to more than 50,000 megawatts, nearing record levels of energy use set in 2006. But the state would rather curb demand to avoid that number than test the power grid's capability to respond.

Meanwhile, some of the aging natural gas plants that California relies on for backup power aren't as reliable in hot weather. As of Sunday afternoon, three of the state's coastal power plants were experiencing partial outages, officials said.

At the same time, some hydropower resources are limited due to drought. Dry conditions and heat are hitting California as the state heads into what traditionally is the worst of the fire season, with large fires already burning and turning deadly.

Mill Fire claims lives

At least two people have died in a blaze that ripped through a Northern California town, said Siskiyou County Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue.

LaRue shared the news of the fatalities on Sunday during a community meeting held at an elementary school north of Weed, the rural Northern California community charred by one of California's latest wildfires. 

About 1,000 people were still under evacuation orders Sunday as firefighters worked to contain the blaze that had sparked out of control on Friday at the start of the holiday weekend.

The blaze, known as the Mill Fire, hadn’t expanded since Saturday morning, covering about 17 sq km with 25 percent containment, according to Cal Fire. 

But the nearby Mountain Fire grew in size on Sunday, officials said. It also started on Friday, though in a less populated area. More than 300 people were under evacuation orders.

A total of 132 structures were destroyed or damaged, Weed's fire officials said on Sunday.

Three people were injured, according to Cal Fire, but no other details were available. It's unclear if these injuries were related to the deaths reported on Sunday.

Weed, home to fewer than 3,000 people about 451 km northeast of San Francisco, is no stranger to wildfires.

Phil Anzo, Cal Fire’s Siskiyou Unit Chief, acknowledged the toll fires have taken on the rural region in recent years.

Weed has seen three major fires since 2014, a period of extreme drought that has prompted the largest and most destructive fires in California history.

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