A nearly hour-long power failure in parts of central Edmonton on Friday was the result of equipment failure at a substation, according to EPCOR.
A company spokesperson said the power outage began at 1:58 p.m. and impacted areas on both sides of the North Saskatchewan River. He said the issue was resolved by 2:46 p.m.
The outage brought traffic to a crawl on a busy stretch of Whyte Avenue, thanks to traffic lights going out, and saw the Queen Elizabeth outdoor pool close briefly.
Coincidentally, the equipment failure leading to the power outage occurred on the same day Alberta set a record for electricity consumption in the summertime.
According to a spokesperson for the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO), at 4 p.m. on Friday, peak electricity demand reached 10,778 megawatts. The all-time peak demand is 11,400 megawatts but that was set in the wintertime.
On Thursday, the AESO tweeted that a new electricity demand had been set for summertime.
READ MORE: Alberta electricity demand surges to all-time high as province remains frozen in cold snap
The AESO spokesperson said she believed hot weather across the province is driving the electricity demand as people use more air conditioners, adding there were no supply concerns.
On Friday, Edmonton set a new high for temperature on July 7 as the city reached 30 C.
READ MORE: Edmonton under heat warning as hot summer weather arrives
Environment Canada issued a heat warning for Edmonton on Thursday as temperatures are expected to be high for an “unusually long duration,” according to the weather agency. Temperatures in some areas could reach the mid-30s through the weekend.
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