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If you thought Sunday was a scorcher, get ready.
The sweltering heat wave will only get worse Monday in a blistering end to the Labor Day weekend, with record-breaking temperatures straining the state’s power grid to the point of possible rolling blackouts, exacerbating fire conditions across Northern California and choking the Bay Area in unhealthy air.
The main event of California’s longest and most punishing heat wave of 2022 is forecast to hit Monday and Tuesday, prompting a warning from California’s power system regulator of statewide energy deficits as forecasters predict record-setting heat from San Jose to Livermore and on into the Central Valley.
The crescendoing temperatures prompted officials to open cooling centers, close parks across the East Bay and even shutter pools in Contra Costa County as much of the South Bay and inland portions of the Bay Area girded for highs topping 100 degrees.
“It’s more of a marathon than a sprint,” said Brayden Murdock, a National Weather Service meteorologist, noting that not even fans can help keep people cool in this heat — they only push hot air. “This is going to be very hot, and its going to be a dry heat, too. It’s going to be an oppressive heat.”
A very dangerous and prolonged period of heat is expected for inland areas over the next several days. Practice heat safety by taking cooling/hydration breaks, checking on others, and never leaving kids or pets in unattended vehicles. Stay safe! #cawx pic.twitter.com/Cb3Dt3pM09
— NWS Bay Area 🌉 (@NWSBayArea) September 4, 2022
The California Independent System Operator on Sunday evening stepped up its warnings about overloading the state’s power grid, issuing an expanded Flex Alert for Monday that asks residents to minimize their energy usage from 4 to 10 p.m. Statewide electrical demand is expected to near 49,000 megawatts on Monday and 50,000 megawatts on Tuesday — close to the all-time record set in 2006, according to the utility regulator.
If those predictions hold true, California could see energy deficits of 2,000 to 4,000 megawatts, leading to “the highest likelihood of rotating outages we have seen so far this summer,” California ISO said. The situation harkened memories of two years ago, when electricity use exceeded supplies in August 2020 and rolling blackouts cut power to 812,000 customers around the state for up to two hours each day.
And another Spare the Air alert was issued for Monday across the Bay Area, meaning that residents can expect unhealthy air conditions both days due to dangerously high ozone and pollution levels. The air quality is forecast to be the worst across Santa Clara and Contra Costa counties, according to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
Sunday served as an overture for the record-breaking weather to come, with temperatures surging past 100 degrees across much of eastern Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Standing in the searing sun among scores of kilt-clad attendees of the Scottish Highland Gathering and Games in Pleasanton, Anne Jennings, 45, said she could barely take the scorching conditions.
“The sun is beating,” said Jennings, after having cheered on her team in the caber toss — an old Scottish contest where kilt-wearing athletes toss a tapered pole. “It was burning my feet.”
Darren Schmidt, 37, stood in the shade and watched in awe.
“There’s a reason only athletes are in the sun,” Schmidt said. “They must be making a killing on water sales.”
The forecast also sent throngs of people flocking to San Francisco’s cool and breezy beaches on Sunday, which were packed with people seeking refuge from the region’s increasingly-dizzying heat. While temperatures in the rest of the Bay Area were set to reach the 80s and 90s, the city known for its fog-filled summers stayed around the mid to upper-70s.
“It’s a relief,” said Rudy Rivera while sitting on his cooler flipping burgers on a portable grill at Baker Beach. He and his family woke up at 5 a.m. on Sunday for the one hour and 45-minute drive from Stockton, because temperatures at home were set to top 100 on Sunday and are forecast to hit 113 on Monday.
“Usually I take my family out to Frisco for sure,” he added. “Just to get away. It’s cooler. The environment is better. This is an escape.”
What began as unseasonably warm weather last week has metastasized into a statewide “heat dome” — a ridge of high pressure extending across almost all of California that is compressing the air and baking the landscape like a pressure cooker.
The National Weather Service extended an excessive heat warning through Wednesday evening for much of the Bay Area, including San Jose, the East Bay Hills and Contra Costa County. A heat advisory is in effect from until 8 p.m. Tuesday for areas closer to the coast, including the San Francisco Bay shoreline and the Marin coast.
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 at or above 110 degrees on Monday and Tuesday — potentially blowing away at least one record-high temperature that has stood for a century. Livermore’s previous records of 108 degrees for both Sept. 5 and Sept. 6 were set in 1950 and 1904, respectively. But twice this week, the city could reach 112.
Brentwood in eastern Contra Coast County could hit 115 early this week, while San Jose could exceed 100 degrees on Monday and Tuesday. In the Bay Area, record high temperatures are forecasted for Redwood City, Gilroy, Santa Rosa, Napa and Livermore.
Only areas closer to the coast will stay in the double digits. Temperatures in Oakland could reach the low- to mid-90s, while San Francisco is forecast to hit the mid-80s.
Cooling centers opened across the Bay Area, including at least a dozen in and around San Jose. Most are expected to remain open through at least Wednesday.
Related Articles Weather | Warmer Bay Area temperatures coming; higher pressure won’t mean heat wave Weather | Weekend rainstorms pelt Northern California, slowing — but not ending — fire season Weather | Direly needed rain begins to fall across portions of Bay Area, Northern California Weather | Get ready for wet, windy weather in the Bay Area Weather | Snow in the forecast for Yosemite and Tahoe peaks The hot weather worsened fire conditions across the state, forcing firefighters to scramble to numerous fires over the past several days.
On Sunday, the grim toll of the fast-moving Mill Fire became apparent as officials announced the deaths of two people in that blaze. The fire, which sparked Friday, destroyed dozens of homes Friday while scorching more than 4,200 acres; it was 25% contained as of Sunday morning. Also in fire-ravaged Siskiyou County, the Mountain Fire grew to more than 6,400 acres and remained 5% contained.
The tinder-like conditions from the heat wave on Sunday already were causing local fires to crop up in the South Bay. An early morning vegetation fire broke out just before 8 a.m. on Mount Hamilton Road, close to the upscale Grandview Restaurant located in a building that dates back to the 1880s.
Fire crews were able to stop the one-acre blaze within about 30 minutes, Cal Fire spokesperson Josh Shifrin said. He added that the heat wave has forced the fire engines to add hydration crews to their teams, who provide pop-up shade and cold drinks. The crews are also working on a different time schedule to reduce their exposure to the heat.
“When it is super hot like this, it makes it harder for firefighters to work in these conditions,” he said.
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