GLOUCESTER (CBS) – Thousands of people are without power Wednesday on the North Shore in the midst of a heat wave.

National Grid says a large portion of the outages are due to a problem with a high-tension line.

At one point there were up to 15,000 outages. As of noon, the number was down to less than 6,000 and most everyone had power by 5 p.m.

Essex, Gloucester, Peabody, and Beverly were among the towns impacted by the outages.

Many residents flocked to the Long Wharf on the Jones River in Gloucester, enjoying the water as a way to cool off.

"It's a good day to be on the nice, cool water while the power is out," said one kayaker.