Thousands of Westwood-area residents and businesses lose power in heat-related blackout
Thousands of residents and businesses in the Westwood area lost power Friday night in a blackout blamed on a record-breaking heat wave that swept through the region, officials said.
The outage occurred shortly after 8 p.m. and affected an area that stretched along Westwood Boulevard and included neighborhoods between Santa Monica and Pico boulevards, according to residents and business owners. The outage appeared to extend to Sepulveda Boulevard.
“It looks to be heat-related from overloaded circuits,” said Carol Tucker, a spokeswoman for the Department of Water and Power.
Tucker said it appeared about 5,000 residents and businesses were without power. She said it was not known when power would be restored.
After the power went out, customers at the bustling California Chicken Cafe on Westwood Boulevard either sat at tables in the dark or dined under the light of cell phones. Workers at the popular Westside restaurant stared blankly at darkened computer terminals.
Unable to take orders or operate the cash registers, the restaurant’s manager Yahayra Marin decided that she had no choice but to close early.
Marin shouted to customers lined three deep that they could not accept any more orders. She apologized for the inconvenience.
She told a reporter that she had to close because there was no way workers in the darkened kitchen could check to be sure the house specialty -- rotisserie chicken -- was the right temperature.
“It’s definitely a loss not only for the employees who lose hours but for business,” Marin said.
Temperatures throughout the region climbed into the upper 90s and triple digits Friday, breaking records throughout Southern California.
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