High temperatures may spark power emergency

SACRAMENTO — Five years after a massive energy crisis roiled California, the state has added capacity to power nearly 6 million more households — but it’s still barely enough.

With soaring temperatures baking California this week, the state is struggling to meet record demand for electricity and is once again on the verge of a first-stage power emergency.

While the situation is far better than the rolling blackouts that rocked the state in 2000-01, California utilities and state officials remain concerned by the ever-increasing demand driven not only by population growth, but lifestyle changes and booming development in warmer inland regions.

“We are seeing new increases in demand on a daily basis — not only when we have heat waves that spike an increase in air conditioning,” said Kim Hughes, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Daily Bulletin