Increased air conditioning use likely to blame for hydro outage in Ottawa's west end, utility says
Residents turning up the air conditioners on the hottest June 1 in Ottawa history likely caused hydro systems to overload, knocking out power to customers in the west end, Hydro Ottawa says.
Thousands of residents and businesses spent several hours in the dark and without air conditioning as the temperature hit 35 C Thursday evening.
Hydro Ottawa reported 8,500 customers in Kanata South, Kanata North, Stittsville and West Carleton-March lost power just before 6 p.m. Thursday.
Hydro was fully restored to all customers overnight.
The utility says the outage was due to some stations in the area becoming overloaded.
"We can speculate at the moment due to increased AC use yesterday," Hydro Ottawa said on Twitter Friday morning.
Hydro Ottawa said Thursday night that the outage was "likely due to the heat and AC being on."
In a statement to CTV News Ottawa on Friday, Hydro Ottawa says strain on the system can cause power outages.
"While Hydro Ottawa’s distribution system is built with sufficient capacity to accommodate summer peak loads, sometimes strain on the system can happen as a result of a sudden increased demand, resulting in outages," the utility said. "While this weather makes our system work harder, we are not experiencing any problems related to the peak demand."
The temperature hit 35.1 C in Ottawa on Thursday, the warmest temperature recorded in Ottawa on June 1.
A heat warning remains in effect for the city of Ottawa, with relief from the warm temperatures not expected until the weekend.
Hydro Ottawa offers the following tips to reduce demand on the system:
- Setting air conditioners to 26 C or higher, or use fans as an alternative
- Turning off unnecessary lights and appliances
- Closing curtains and blinds to keep out the sun and retain cooler air inside
- Delaying the use of dishwashers, washers, dryers and pool pumps until after 8:00 p.m.
With files from CTV News Ottawa's Natalie van Rooy
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP motion regarding Palestinian statehood passes after major Liberal alterations
A motion from the federal New Democrats initially calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine' passed amid widespread acrimony on Monday, after the Liberals drastically altered its wording to see the government simply work towards that aim as part of a two-state solution.
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.