OCOTILLO WELLS HITS 123; STATE ISSUES NEW FLEX ALERT
Southern California’s lingering heat wave reached a remarkable misery point on Thursday when Ocotillo Wells hit 123 degrees, a reading that appears to be the second-highest temperature ever recorded in San Diego County.
The National Weather Service says that the hot spot — southeast of Borrego Springs, near the border of Imperial County — hit 124 at an unspecified date in the past.
Ocotillo Wells is not an official weather service climate station, but the agency has been monitoring temperatures there for years.
Forecasters say that the highest climate station reading ever recorded in the county was 122 degrees, which occurred in Borrego Springs in 2016.
The temperature also hit 123 on Thursday in Palm Springs, tying the all-time high at that location.
Thursday also was notable for the extraordinary temperature disparity in greater San Diego. While it was 123 at Ocotillo Wells, it was 68 at Oceanside Harbor — a difference of 55 degrees.
“Temperatures will be similar on Friday,” said Stefanie Sullivan, a weather service forecaster. “There won’t be a big drop until Monday.”
California grid managers say the power system is holding up pretty well in the face of the heat wave that has blanketed most of the state. Nonetheless, the California Independent System Operator has issued a second consecutive request for consumers to voluntarily cut back on their energy use.
The grid operator, known as the CAISO, issued a Flex Alert, effective from 6 to 9 p.m. today. The notification comes one day after the CAISO issued its first Flex Alert of 2021 that went into effect from 5 to 10 p.m. Thursday.
The Flex Alerts come as high temperatures have settled over large sections of the West. The National Weather Service announced more than 40 million people in the region are broiling under heat advisories or excessive heat warnings.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an emergency proclamation Thursday to free up additional energy capacity. The proclamation suspends some permitting requirements, allowing the use of backup power generation and frees up extra energy resources to help alleviate demands on the grid.