SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4) — Thousands of Utah residents lost power over the weekend, amid record-breaking heat. Rocky Mountain power officials explained why this happens and how residents can prepare.
On Sunday, Salt Lake City reached 109 degrees, with high temperatures recorded across the street. About 17,000 people lost power, with Rocky Mountain Power attributing the outages by overheated transformers and fuses.
17,000 without power throughout Utah during record-breaking heat
Chad Monroe, a spokesperson with Rocky Mountain Power, said the power grid is capable of handling high temperatures, but individual equipment can have issues.
“There were localized outages based on strain on localized equipment, that happens when any weather event occurs, whether it be extreme heat, extreme cold, high winds…just think weather and it causes problems sometimes,” Monroe explained.
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When Rocky Mountain Power is aware of a potential weather event, Monroe says they bring in additional personnel and work to quickly respond to issues…