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Could extreme heat trigger power outages in North Carolina?

With a stretch of 90-degree days in central North Carolina, the heat has a lot of people doing their outings in the morning or after the sun goes down. That means more people are staying inside and blasting the air conditioning and fans. But all that can mean a strain on the power grid.

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By
Chelsea Donovan
, WRAL reporter

With a stretch of 90-degree days in central North Carolina, the heat has a lot of people doing their outings in the morning or after the sun goes down. That means more people are staying inside and blasting the air conditioning and fans. But all that can mean a strain on the power grid.

Duke Energy supplies more than 4 million customers in North and South Carolina with power.

"As we come into summer season, we see usage get some of the highest usage we see throughout the year," said Duke Energy spokesman Jeff Brooks.

"One of the times we see demand, the highest stress, is when you have extended period of extreme temperatures, especially when you don't get cooling in the evening that can help the system bounce back from a hot day," he said.

Brooks said Duke Energy's power lines are in overdrive.

"We maintain more than 100,000 miles of lines we have to make sure are working every day," said Brooks.

NERC, a regulating authority that oversees the health of the nation's electrical infrastructure just released their annual report, noting that extreme temperatures and ongoing drought could cause the power grid to buckle.

However, Brooks said Duke Energy is prepared for this.

"When you think about it, the grid is a machine. It delivers powers to customers, but like any machine, it has to work in extreme conditions, and heat is one of those extreme conditions," said Brooks.

"We do work through our planning process and through our design and building to make sure we can respond in extreme conditions," he said.

But in some states, such as California, rolling blackouts, or temporary power shut downs, can help a system that's overloaded.

"We have a diverse generating fleet so a lot of different resources we can pull from to meet energy needs," said Brooks.

Duke Energy says there are several ways for people to help conserve power and keep their bills lower including:

  • Turn off all unnecessary appliances and equipment
  • Use electric fans instead of air conditioning when practical
  • Shut off lights when leaving a room
  • Close drapes and blinds to keep out direct sunlight during hot periods
  • Avoid using evaporative coolers or humidifiers at the same time an air conditioner is running
  • Limit the opening and reopening of refrigerators, which are major users of electricity in most homes

Duke Energy has never implemented blackouts before.

"These are periods we have to plan for as an electric utility," said Brooks. "We have to think about what we need to do to reliably deliver power to customers while making sure our system stays operational."

They also have a Neighborhood Energy Saver Program where they will come out to do a walk-through of a customer's home to help them save on their monthly bill while also saving energy.

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