Edison planning OC power outages amid heat wave

YORBA LINDA, Calif. (KABC) -- With a heat wave approaching this weekend, some Orange County residents are concerned about a scheduled power outage for maintenance purposes by Southern California Edison.

Edison has planned a dozen outages Sunday throughout California, affecting some 400 customers.

In Orange County, the scheduled maintenance will affect about 90 customers. Edison says it plans to do the work overnight or during early morning hours, hopefully completing it before high temperatures put a strain on air-conditioning power resources.

Of the five different outages planned for Orange County, the largest will be in the Garden Grove area, affecting 73 customers. That will start at 10 p.m. Sunday and is estimated to be completed by 6 a.m. the next day.

The others, in Santa Ana, Buena Park and Seal Beach, will each affect less than five customers.

The utility said it is reviewing maintenance outages that were planned prior to the coming heat wave. Some are still necessary in order to avoid more severe outages, the company said.

"Some will be rescheduled while others may still proceed as scheduled based on a variety of factors, including public safety and the need to avert a more serious outage," Edison said. "We will notify customers in the event of an outage being rescheduled for a later date.

The utility offered tips on how to stay cool without an air conditioner.

It also noted that energy conservation is particularly important this year, given the loss of natural gas supplies used to generate electricity from the Southern California Gas Co.'s Alison Canyon storage facility. That is the site that was shut down late last year after a massive leak forced thousands of evacuations in the Porter Ranch area of the San Fernando Valley.

The forecast calls for temperatures to reach at least 96 degrees in most parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties on Sunday, with 106 possible in some inland and valley areas. The temperature will climb even higher on Monday, up to 110 degrees in some parts of the valleys, Inland Empire and deserts.