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- Record-breaking heat caused equipment failures leaving 13,000 without power Sunday.
- Rocky Mountain Power faced transformer and fuse issues across the Wasatch Front.
- Customers are urged to update contact info for outage alerts and emergency notifications.
SALT LAKE CITY — Record-breaking temperatures over the weekend put both residents and power infrastructure under strain, contributing to outages that left an estimated 13,000 Rocky Mountain Power customers without electricity Sunday.
Rocky Mountain Power communication specialist Jona Whitesides said extreme temperatures can place significant stress on electrical equipment, increasing the likelihood of failures.
"Anytime you have extreme weather, in this case, heat, but it could also be cold, the equipment on the electrical system gets stressed," Whitesides said. "It can fail; it can have issues."
The outages were caused by problems with transformers and fuses across multiple locations, Whitesides said.
"We saw issues with some of our transformers, with some of our fuses," Whitesides said. "And it wasn't just in one place. It was all along the Wasatch Front."
Utility officials said it is difficult to predict exactly where outages will occur, even with routine maintenance and inspections.
"We inspect all of our equipment annually, but you just don't know how it's going to perform under certain stress," Whitesides said.
Crews worked throughout the weekend to restore power and respond to service interruptions as quickly as possible.
"We realize that people do depend upon electricity, whether it's for medical devices or their jobs," Whitesides said. "We are dependent on electricity, and we understand that does impact people's lives."
Rocky Mountain Power is encouraging customers to make sure their contact information is current through the company's website so they can receive outage notifications and emergency alerts.
"We try to do our best to make it reliable, but when it does go out, we definitely want people to be prepared," Whitesides said. "We want people to be safe. We want communities to be safe."
The utility also offers additional support for customers who rely on electricity to operate medical equipment. Whitesides said customers can obtain a medical certificate through their healthcare provider, allowing Rocky Mountain Power to contact them directly during an outage. The certificate also may help qualifying customers reduce their electric bills.
More information about medical certificates and outage preparedness is available on Rocky Mountain Power's website.
