WALNUT CREEK, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 2: Power lines and a tower are silhouetted by the sun as extreme temperatures reach the upper 90s in Walnut, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Californians are being asked to conserve energy for the fifth straight day as a punishing heat wave intensifies Sunday across the state, bringing dangerously-hot temperatures to much of Northern California and inland portions of the Bay Area.
The California Independent System Operator issued another Flex Alert for 4 to 9 p.m. Sunday for the state, which asks residents to minimize their energy usage to keep the state’s power grids from overloading. The alert comes as the brunt of a sweltering heat wave settles into Northern California – pushing temperatures 10 to 25 degrees above normal for much of the area and heightening the risk of heat stroke.
The utilities regulator expects energy consumption to peak around 5:30 p.m. Sunday, with Californians using nearly 45,700 megawatts of power during that time. It’s only about 3,000 megawatts below the state’s current capacity.
The massive ridge of high pressure that has trapped much of California in a so-called heat dome is expected to continue to build Sunday before hitting its peak on Monday and Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. It also will take a while for that hot air to subside, meaning above-average temperatures could linger across Northern California and the Bay Area for much of the week.
Dangerous Heat Ahead
Triple digit heat to impact interior portions of the Bay Area and Central Coast through at least midweek. Stay hydrated and keep cool! #CAwx #BayAreaWX #CAheat pic.twitter.com/jzGs4PRZTE
— NWS Bay Area
(@NWSBayArea) September 4, 2022
Livermore and Concord could see temperatures reach the high 90s on Sunday before reaching or exceeding 110 degrees on Monday and Tuesday.
Temperatuers across San Jose are expected to range from the high 80s to mid-90s on Sunday before spiking to 102 on Monday.
Oakland is forecast to be in the low-to-mid 80s on Sunday before jumping to the low 90s the next couple of days. San Francisco should be in the mid-to-high 70 degrees on Sunday before temperatures increase into the low-to-mid 80s on Monday and Tuesday.
Originally published at Jakob Rodgers