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New Yorkers have been asked to limit their use of electricity — and Times Square Alliance (TSA) has made a special request for billboards to be dimmed — after a second straight day of excessive heat in the city.
“The Mayor’s Office and the Office of Emergency Management has asked our help to reduce power consumption in the Times Square area during this heatwave. Please make every effort to reduce power consumption for buildings — INCLUDING SIGNS — so we do our part to preserve the power grid during this time,” said TSA President Tom Harris.
The request came as New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said: “It’s really important that everyone recognizes when the heat gets like this, it puts more and more strain on our electrical system, on Con Ed. Everyone can help us — help each other — by being smart today and tomorrow about how you use your energy.”
The National Weather Service issued another excessive heat warning for New York City. There is a projected heat index of over 105 with humidity likely to hit a high of 95.
The city is recommending to only use appliances in the early morning or late at night. Pet owners, especially those with dogs, have been warned to be careful of their pet’s paws on the overheated pavements.
Cooling Centers have been opened around the city — some of which allow pets.
Although temperatures will drop tomorrow (Friday) the heatwave is projected to continue until Sunday.
The last major New York blackout occurred on August 14, 2003 — which stopped the New York subway and threw the switch on the city for nearly 7 hours.
Large-scale power outages are increasingly common in the United States, as extreme weather fueled by climate change wreaks havoc on the aging electrical grid. Climate Central reports that weather-related outages in the North East have increased 159% in the past decade.
