Maryland in 'energy emergency alert level one' amid hazardous heat wave
BALTIMORE -- The severe heat is putting Maryland's power systems in overdrive, with operators doing everything they can to make sure that things are running smoothly.
Maryland is part of the largest power grid in the country. Seeing the forecast, the regional transmission operator in charge of it started putting in some precautions last weekend.
Local train systems also reported issues Thursday because of the heat.
PJM is in charge of the power grid in Maryland and 12 other states, as well as Washington, D.C. It ensures utility companies like BGE are able to provide service.
Michael Bryson, senior vice president of operations for PJM, said since PJM's whole footprint is going to be dealing with scorching heat for days—they issued an energy emergency alert level one.
"We have all of our generation on the system ready to run sometime [Thursday] to be able to serve the demand on the system that's certainly increased because of the level of heat," he said.
Bryson adds the storms in the forecast will likely help ease some of the burden, but that can lead to other issues.
"Storms will lower the demand because it'll get a little cooler out," Bryson said. "But, you might see local storm damage issues. Your local utilities will really be the first ones responding to those situations."
Train lines started warning travelers to be prepared for heat-related delays starting Thursday morning.
Trains were largely running on time at Penn Station by around 11 a.m., but Amtrak had been reporting delays of up to 40-to-50 minutes.
The MTA canceled the train that departs at 5:20 p.m. from Union Station on Thursday and Friday because of the heat, too.
David Harris told WJZ he and his wife planned to head to New York City Thursday, and they came extra early to Penn Station in case of delays.
The MTA also said the Light Rail trains are now running on reduced speed because of the heat. That's something Kevin Stephenson has seen a lot, as someone who's taken the train around the region a lot for work.
"Talking with conductors, I know they have to take it slower sometimes due to the heat," Stephenson said. "I know this is one of the hottest weekends that we'll probably have this summer."
BGE recommends conserving energy to alleviate demand on the grid. They say you should close your shades and blinds to lessen the need for air conditioning, reduce hot water usage, and maybe avoid cooking too much with your stove and oven for now.
