39 Million People at Risk as Extreme Heat Persists in the West; Blackouts Threaten California and Nevada

Extreme heat in the form of a widespread heat wave is reportedly affecting around 39 million people in the Western United States.

The excessive heat has placed many residents in California, Nevada, Montana, Oregon, and Washington under weather alerts during the Labor Day weekend.

While there were no immediate reports of casualties, the heat dome expansion has led to infrastructural disruption across the region, including blackouts and power outages in California and Nevada.

These latest developments were initially covered by Nature World News since the onset of September and serve as an update.

Excessive Heat in the West

(Photo : Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)

AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter explained that all the risks associated with the extreme heat is more concerning than other heat waves.

This is because it will occur during the holiday weekend, where large number of people are spending time outdoors and could be less aware of the heat risks, Porter emphasized.

The meteorologist added that many tourists and vacationers are expected to visit heat-impacted areas this weekend; a time visitors could be less accustomed to extreme heat precautions, as cited by AccuWeather.

Also Read: Extreme Heat Waves Can Cause More Power Outages

California Grid Emergency

Millions of people, not only in California but also in Nevada, are urged by their local state governments to reduce electricity consumption during the said holiday weekend amid the hot temperatures and heat wave scorching the West, according to CNN.

In the past few days, California officials initiated a series of measures, including the issuance of a state grid emergency by California Governor Gavin Newsom.

The emergency declaration aims to address the growing issue of increasing electricity demand and increasing threat of rolling blackouts throughout the state.

In addition, California authorities also asked Californians to conserve energy, specifically 4:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. to avoid power shortages or power outages.

The mandate affects both residential and commercial areas.

As of late Saturday, September 3, there are more than 30,000 recorded power outages in California, according to the utility monitoring site PowerOutage.US.

The power crisis comes after the California Independent System Operator tapped on all the available power supplies serving the state.

Nevada Blackouts

In Nevada, power provider NV Energy, which serves over 1.5 million houses and businesses across the state, has requested residents to cut buck their electricity use.

In particular, the utility company schedules Nevadans to conserve primarily between 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. to avoid straining the power grid, CNN reports.

NWS Dangerous Heat Forecast

The National Weather Service (NWS) issues a forecast that the persistent "dangerous heat wave" will continue to impact the Western US throughout middle part of next week.

The NWS also warned of the development of critical fire weather conditions across the northern Great Basin from Saturday.

The US weather agency's Weather Prediction Center (WPC) also said that there is an excessive heat warnings and heat advisories over some areas of the West Coast.

The heat alerts pertain to the risk of heat-related illnesses and potentially life-threatening high temperatures.