Power Record Set

The heat wave in BC has led to a new summer record for power consumption in the province.

BC Hydro says electricity use reached more than 78-hundred megawatts Monday evening, breaking the previous summer high in August 2017 by almost 300 megawatts.

Hydro says the surge in demand is due to more people using fans and air conditioners, and refrigeration units working harder to stay cool.

“Demand for power this month has been the highest BC Hydro has ever seen in July,” says a release from the power company. “This month had the most days ever – 14 days – with peak hourly demand exceeding 7,000 megawatts. This is a continuation of a trend of higher demand in July as a result of climate change. From 2015 to 2017, there was an average of 8.7 days that exceeded a peak hourly demand of 7,000 megawatts. That is more than five times the average from the previous five years (2010 to 2014).”