By Greg Fry

Heat wave prompts record electricity use

Jul 31, 2018 | 1:52 PM

KAMLOOPS — Toasty temperatures in July have led to record-breaking electricity use in British Columbia.

BC Hydro says power consumption Monday night,  when peak hourly demand – the hour that customers use the most electricity – reached over 7,800 megawatts.

“And this is due to an increase in electricity use due to customers turning on their fans or air conditioners and refrigeration units working a lot harder to stay cool,” says spokesperson Mora Scott.

She adds Monday’s demand record represents a 4 per cent increase over the peak hourly demand last Monday, when temperatures were already quite high and 18 per cent over the same day last year.

Scott notes it’s a trend BC Hydro has seen all month.

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“Demand for power this month has been the highest BC Hydro has ever seen in July. This month had the most days ever – about 14 – with peak hourly demand exceeding about 7,000 megawatts, which is what we consider to be quite high in the summer.”

She says people can help keep their bills low by doing a number of things including closing doors and windows, shading your windows, and using a ceiling fan as opposed to an air conditioner.