People urged to conserve power until 8pm to avoid blackouts

ABC NEWS (Australia)

New South Wales has been on alert for possible blackouts due to the heatwave. The state's energy grid has been stretched to the limit as authorities pleaded with households and businesses to minimise their electricity use.

Transcript

00:00Jumping in to an early start to summer.

00:06With temperatures almost reaching 40 degrees in Penrith,

00:10Sydney's hottest end to spring in five years comes with its perks.

00:15We've got to beat the heat for school, no school today,

00:19because of the heat.

00:21Bit hot for school today.

00:23But a heatwave in November also presents serious challenges

00:28when it comes to keeping the lights on.

00:30A email has advised that there isn't quite enough supply

00:32to meet forecast demand during this evening's peak.

00:35Four of the state's ten power generators are offline for maintenance

00:39in preparation for the height of summer.

00:42But the hot weather is already here,

00:45and the bad timing creates the potential for widespread blackouts.

00:49What we are trying to do is reduce demand across the system

00:52by large energy users, by the government as well,

00:55and we're now asking households and businesses to see what they can do.

00:58If the air conditioner won't turn on,

01:00an afternoon dip is usually your best bet.

01:03But for those who don't live near the east coast,

01:06the newest way to cool off in the west, Penrith Beach, remains closed.

01:11Part of so-called Pond Eye is still under construction.

01:15We saw 200,000 residents flock to it last year.

01:18We think there's a real opportunity to make this a permanent facility,

01:21not just for the people of Penrith, but the residents of Western Sydney.

01:24We're making it better and bigger than last year,

01:27but we are in the middle of getting it ready for summer.

01:31The Premier won't say when the government plans to reopen the swimming spot,

01:35hoping to keep expectations low as the mercury gets set to rise.

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