Skip to Content

Power restored for thousands of El Pasoans amid 3rd day of record-breaking high temps

heat wave
MGN

EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso shattered the record high temperature on Thursday for a third-straight day amid an unusual August heat wave that saw as many as 9,000 homes and businesses lose electricity at one point.

El Paso Electric said crews on Thursday afternoon were dispatched to locate issues and get the power back on as quickly as possible in parts of west, northeast and east El Paso - which is where the bulk of the outages were concentrated.

As of 5:40 p.m., the utility said electrical service had been restored to most everyone. EPE said it appreciated customers being patient as crews worked in the extreme heat to get service back and up running.

A utility spokesman indicated that "sustained high temperatures experienced over the last several days and very high load conditions triggered a system imbalance."

"Sustained hot weather does not allow for infrastructure to cool down properly overnight, causing it to overheat and damage electrical equipment," EPE's Javier Camacho explained.

At the El Paso International Airport Thursday afternoon, the high temperature officially reached 106 degrees, surpassing the record of 102 for the date set back in 2010.

ABC-7 Chief Meteorologist 'Doppler Dave' Speelman said triple-digit temperatures typically end come the start of August, but such hasn't been the case this week.

On Wednesday, a new record high of 107 was hit, beating the old record of 102 in 2016. And on Tuesday, El Paso had reached 106 degrees to top the old 105 degree record from 1993.

'Doppler Dave' said the all-time hottest temperature recorded in August was 108 back in 1980.

Heat Advisory for the El Paso area remains in effect through Friday and the city is operating cooling centers for residents to escape the heat.

The National Weather Service recommends drinking plenty of fluids, staying out of the sun and wearing lightweight and loose fitting clothing to avoid the risk of heat-related illnesses.

For current weather conditions and the latest forecast, visit kvia.com/weather.

Article Topic Follows: Weather News

Jump to comments ↓

Author Profile Photo

Jim Parker

Jim Parker is the former Director of Digital Content for ABC-7.

BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION

KVIA ABC 7 is committed to providing a forum for civil and constructive conversation.

Please keep your comments respectful and relevant. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here

If you would like to share a story idea, please submit it here.

Skip to content