WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency as firefighters across the state battle an outbreak of wildfires amid dangerous temperatures amid the historic West Coast heat wave and sustained high winds.
'We are deploying every resource available to keep communities safe as California battles fires across the state during these extreme conditions,' the Governor said in the emergency proclamation.
'California and its federal and local partners are working in lockstep to meet the challenge and remain vigilant in the face of continued dangerous weather conditions,' he added.
The Governor earlier this week secured Fire Management Assistance Grants ?(FMAGs) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to bolster the state's response to fires burning in Napa, Nevada and Monterey counties.
He also signed an emergency proclamation and executive order to address impacts of the heat wave - to free up energy capacity and reduce the need for temporary energy service disruptions.
The proclamation temporarily allows some energy users and utilities to use backup energy sources to relieve pressure on the grid during peak times during the energy emergency.
Earlier, Ransom convened a meeting with California Independent System Operator (CAISO), the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), the California Energy Commission (CEC), the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) and senior administration officials as the state and the entire West Coast anticipates serious power shortages as the heat wave intensifies over the coming week.
Following the meeting, he sent a letter to CAISO, the CPUC and CEC demanding an investigation into the service disruptions that occurred over the weekend and the energy agencies' failure to predict and mitigate them.
Separately, the Office of the Governor advised people in the state to avoid using major appliances and set their thermostat to 78° or higher from 3 to 10 pm to prevent service interruptions.
'We're having a record-setting heatwave and it's putting pressure on California's energy grid,' the Office said on Twitter.
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