This week's intense heat pushed California's energy demand to all-time record levels.
The California Independent System Operator (ISO) issued a rare level 3 "Energy Emergency" on Tuesday night, urging consumers to cut back on energy use to protect the power grid.
EEA 3 alerts are issued when ISO is unable to meet minimum contingency reserve requirements and may force the potential for rotating power outages.
According to the ISO website, Tuesday's peak use exceeded 51,000 megawatts, topping the previous daily record of 50,270 megawatts in 2006.
Late Tuesday night, natural gas was responsible for over 50% of California's power supply.
Over 30,000 people were in the dark, that number climbing quickly to over 70,000 by Tuesday night. ISO anticipates additional outages over the next several days as high temperatures will remain well above 100 degrees.
California's most intense heat wave of the year broke record highs.
On Thursday, the mercury hit 127 degrees in Death Valley National Park, making it the hottest temperature ever recorded for the month of September.
On Tuesday, Sacramento recorded its all-time record high temperature of 115 degrees, breaking the old record of 114 set in 1925.
In Fresno, the mercury climbed to 111 over Labor Day weekend after seven consecutive days of temperatures of 105 degrees or higher.
Forecast high temperatures are expected to remain well above 100 through Friday across California, pushing energy demand to record levels through the week.
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