Western Heat Wave Kills At Least Six

Strain On Power Grid Leaves Hundreds Of Thousands In The Dark

(AP)  Sweltering heat may have caused at least six deaths this week in Arizona and California, including a resident at a nursing home who died after the air conditioning system failed.

In Arizona, record-breaking temperatures may have caused the deaths of two transient men in Phoenix over the weekend. One, believed to be in his 50s, died Sunday, and another, a 28-year-old man, died Saturday.

Triple-digit temperatures covered much of the Southwest, and cranked-up air conditioners throughout California briefly threatened to send the state into a power emergency for a second-straight day.

Heavy electricity usage caused blackouts throughout the state, with more than 50,000 Southern California homes and businesses without power Sunday afternoon. Power company officials said it could be another day before power is restored.

In Northern California and the Central Valley, more than 130,000 homes and businesses had no electricity as of Sunday evening, including nearly 49,000 in San Jose and 27,000 in Diablo, according to Pacific Gas & Electric.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is urging residents to set thermostats as high as possible and to avoid using major appliances.

"We need all Angelenos' help as we tackle this extreme heat wave and the demand it has placed on our electrical system," said Villaraigosa, at a Sunday news conference.

Emergency workers scrambled to help heat exposure victims in downtown Los Angeles, where 99-degree temperatures broke the 96-degree record set in 1960. Temperatures in the city's Woodland Hills section hit a record 119 degrees, topping the 116-degree high set in 1985.

"Today I realized I can't function with just a fan," Woodland Hills resident Susan Mitnik told the Los Angeles Times. "It feels like everything is radiating heat. My head begins to pound."

Records were also set throughout the San Francisco Bay area, including Livermore at 115 degrees, San Rafael at 108 degrees and San Jose at 102 degrees, according to the weather service. San Francisco's 87 degrees topped an 81-degree record set in 1917.

Excessive heat warnings are in effect in parts of Southern California, where temperatures reached 97 degrees in downtown Los Angeles and 108 degrees in nearby Woodland Hills.