S.F. Cools Off but Outages Persist

A scorching three-day heat wave that contributed to two deaths, produced widespread power outages and buckled lanes on a major freeway began to break Thursday, as the fog once again rolled through the Golden Gate.

Temperatures that had reached three-digit records fell swiftly Thursday, with San Francisco reaching a high of only 74, and cooler weather is expected for today.

But the stress that the heat wave put on the region’s power supply continued, and 17,000 Bay Area customers lost power Thursday, even as crews worked around the clock to repair equipment. The outages ranged from one hour for some customers to as long as 24 hours for others.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. ordered 135 commercial and industrial companies to roll back or eliminate usage from noon to 6 p.m. Thursday. The customers receive lower rates in exchange for pledging to cut off power during high-demand periods.

“The Bay Area is still sucking up a lot of electricity off the grid and causing some overloading problems,” said Stephanie McCorkle, a spokeswoman for the California Independent System Operator, a state agency that manages electricity flow. “It takes a lot to cool off buildings after three days of heat.”

The strain on older power plants reduced their ability to generate electricity. Generation was down 488 megawatts Wednesday and 800 megawatts Thursday, McCorkle said. One megawatt is enough to power about 1,000 homes.

Even with the reduction, the region was spared the rolling blackouts Thursday that were needed the previous day to prevent the electricity grid from collapsing under the soaring demand.

The shut-offs, ordered by the state, cut power to 97,000 Bay Area customers for alternating periods of as long as 90 minutes.

In Oakland, officials pleaded with residents to leave fire hydrants alone to protect water pressure in case of a fire.

“This is the water that might be needed to save your house,” Oakland City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente implored. Oakland residents blistering in Wednesday’s 106-degree temperatures had opened up at least 80 hydrants, releasing 1,000 gallons of water a minute from each. Officials who tried to stop the flow at some hydrants were doused with buckets of water.

The temperature in Oakland dropped to a high of 76 degrees on Thursday, and the city reported only scattered releases from hydrants.

San Francisco’s high of 74 was a relief after the 103-degree sizzle of the day before. The city has topped 100 degrees only 12 times in the past 100 years.

Bay breezes allowed many stores near the Embarcadero to turn off fans, and many coffeehouses reported that orders for hot drinks were back to normal.

San Francisco’s beaches were downright chilly, with fog sending temperatures to 55 degrees by the afternoon.

The mercury also dropped farther inland. In the Contra Costa city of Concord, the temperature at the airport fell from 109 degrees Wednesday to 96 degrees Thursday.

Hospitals throughout the region reported far fewer heat-related calls for ambulances.

Eric Imhof, a planner for the Contra Costa County Office of Emergency Services, said ambulance volume was up 33% on Wednesday and back to normal Thursday.

“Things seem to be much better,” Imhof said.

But not better for everyone. A surge in business Wednesday at the Las Palmas Barber Shop in Walnut Creek dropped just as fast as the temperatures on Thursday.

“Everybody wanted their hair off,” said barber Gina Petruk. The air-conditioned shop was empty by early afternoon Thursday.

A fire in Napa County that burned 5,731 acres and six structures, including two homes, was more than 60% contained by Thursday afternoon. A handful of firefighters suffered minor injuries. The fire was apparently caused by sparks when a tire burst on a boat trailer and the axle was dragged along the road.

Radio, television and newspapers continued to advise residents of ways to prevent dehydration and heat exhaustion. At least two deaths Wednesday were blamed on the heat.

Police said a 70-year-old woman in the East Bay city of Hayward died of a heat stroke while waiting in her stalled car for a service truck. Her 77-year-old husband was taken to a hospital, where he was in critical condition.

The couple’s car had stalled and a tow truck answering their call apparently went to the wrong location, the San Francisco Examiner reported. The couple remained in their car and waited.

A 74-year-old man in Pleasanton also was felled by the heat. He apparently had been out for a walk and died on a park path, officials said.

Three of four lanes of a major freeway between San Francisco and Sacramento also had to be shut down during the commuter rush Wednesday after the heat buckled the road.

The Central Valley continued to swelter under a third day of triple-digit temperatures. But the region, where soaring summer heat is the norm, slogged along with few problems.

The Sacramento Municipal Utility District periodically shut off power to 118,000 businesses that receive lower rates in exchange for cutbacks during times of high demand.

*

Times staff writer Eric Bailey in Sacramento and correspondent Richard Chon in Alameda and Contra Costa counties contributed to this report.

*

ELECTRICITY PRICES HEAT UP

San Diego area electric bills are rising with the mercury. C2