Millions of Australians have been warned that more power outages are likely as an ongoing heatwave pushes electricity demand to its highest levels since June.
New South Wales’s limited power supply will be put to the test from Wednesday afternoon, when residents escape the scorching heat by turning on the air conditioning during the summer days.
The intensifying heatwave is expected to see temperatures in Sydney’s densely populated western suburbs rise to 40C on Wednesday and Thursday.
Sweltering conditions have occurred during scheduled maintenance at three of the state’s four coal-fired power plants, which remain the state’s primary source of energy.
Power supplies are expected to be “at risk” on Wednesday and Thursday, according to the Australian Energy Market Operator.
An urgent warning has been issued to those who rely on electricity for medical equipment so they have a backup plan in the event of an outage.
It comes after several parts of Sydney, including the CBD, were left without power on Tuesday afternoon.
The outages wreaked havoc on thousands of Australians, including a TikTok star who was shopping for snacks at a CBD Woolworths.
New South Wales’ limited power supply, combined with increased demand for air conditioners, could lead to widespread blackouts. In the photo, bathers in Bondi at the weekend.
A heatwave is expected to send temperatures up to 40C in parts of Sydney on Wednesday and Thursday.
Influencer Chichiireanus posted a video of her and other shoppers evacuating Pitt St Woolworths, with the normally well-lit supermarket shrouded in darkness and an alarm going off.
‘What the devil?’ you can hear it in the video.
Energy distributor Ausgrid confirmed more than 300 customers were without power along Sussex Street, King Street and parts of Pitt Street shortly after 3pm.
“Ausgrid emergency crews worked throughout the afternoon to restore power throughout the CBD,” an Ausgrid spokeswoman said.
‘Power was restored to all customers at 7 p.m.
“The cause of the blackout is a suspected failure in an underground cable and is not heat related.”
Chichiireanus, who has almost 13,000 followers on the popular social media channel, captioned her video with: “All I wanted was my salad and my fun sweets.”
“Of course a blackout happens as soon as I’m buying my lunch,” he wrote.
Shoppers evacuated the Woolworths on Pitt St during a power outage in Sydney’s CBD on Tuesday.
Electricity demand is expected to rise by at least five percent on Wednesday, the highest since June.
While New South Wales has previously been able to cope with surges in demand, the closure of three major coal-fired power stations over the past 12 years – at Munmorah, Wallerawang and Liddell – has weakened supply.
The New South Wales government will decide on Wednesday morning whether to instruct staff in public buildings, including museums, to reduce energy use.
AEMO said “continuing heatwave conditions combined with significant generation outages” could cause further blackouts in the next 48 hours.
“AEMO is actively managing the situation and has issued updated stockout notices, urging industry participants to respond to projected demand requirements in the coming days,” it said.
‘Additional measures may be necessary if supply forecasts worsen due to unexpected generation or transmission outages, or if demand increases beyond current expectations.
“AEMO has not currently asked NSW residents or businesses to use less energy during these heatwave conditions.”
The intensifying heatwave is expected to bring significant temperatures to Sydney’s densely populated western suburbs on Wednesday and Thursday.
Sydney
Wednesday: Mostly sunny day. Slight chance of showers at night. Light winds becoming north to northwest at 20 to 30 km/h in the morning and then trending north to northeast at 15 to 20 km/h in the afternoon. Min 21. Max 34.
Thursday: Partly cloudy. High probability of rain. The possibility of a storm. Light winds. Min 22. Max 30.
Friday: Cloudy. High chance of rain, more likely in the afternoon and evening. The possibility of a storm. Winds will be light from the east at 15 to 20 km/h during the afternoon and then become light overnight. Min 21. Max 26.
Melbourne
Wednesday: Partly cloudy. Very high probability of rain. Chance of storm, possibly severe. Winds from the north to northeast at 25 to 35 km/h, trending north to northwest in the morning and becoming light in the late afternoon. Min 20. Max 28.
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Slight chance of showers in the morning and afternoon. Possibility of a storm over the nearby hills in the morning and afternoon. Light winds becoming southeast to southwest at 15 to 25 km/h in the early afternoon and then becoming light at the end of the night. Min 16. Max 26.
Friday: Partly cloudy. Average chance of showers. The possibility of a storm. Light winds becoming from the southeast at 15 to 25 km/h during the afternoon. Min 17. Max 29.
brisbane
Wednesday: Partly cloudy. Average chance of showers, more likely in the morning and afternoon. Winds will be light from the northeast at 15 to 20 km/h in the middle of the day and will become light in the late afternoon. Min 21. Max 29.
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Average chance of showers. Winds will be light from the northeast at 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon and then become light in the evening. Min 22. Max 30.
Friday: Partly cloudy. Average chance of showers. Light northeasterly winds at 15 to 20 km/h during the day and then light at night. Min 23. Max 29.
The New South Wales government will consider on Wednesday morning whether to instruct staff in public buildings, including museums, to reduce their energy consumption.
Perth
Wednesday: Sunny. Winds from the east to southeast at 25 to 35 km/h, becoming light in the afternoon and then from the east at 20 to 30 km/h in the late afternoon. Min 13. Max 29.
Thursday: Sunny. Winds from the east at 25 to 40 km/h that become light in the afternoon and then from the east at 15 to 20 km/h in the late afternoon. Min 17. Max 33.
Friday: Mostly sunny day. Chance of a storm in the northeast during the afternoon and evening. Winds from the east at 20 to 30 km/h, trending northeast during the morning and then changing from south to southwest at 15 to 20 km/h during the afternoon. Min 21. Max 37.
Adelaide
Wednesday: Partly cloudy. High chance of rain, probably early in the morning. Winds from the west to northwest at 25 to 35 km/h, becoming northwest at 35 to 45 km/h in the morning and then turning west to southwest at 25 to 35 km/h during the afternoon and evening. Min 15. Max 23.
Thursday: Cloudy. Average chance of showers, most likely in the morning and early afternoon. Winds from the southwest at 20 to 30 km/h turning south at 15 to 20 km/h in the afternoon. Min 14. Max 22.
Friday: Slight chance of showers, more likely in the morning. Mostly sunny afternoon. Light winds becoming southwest at 15 to 25 km/h during the day and then turning south to southeast at 15 to 20 km/h overnight. Min 13. Max 24.
hobart
Wednesday: Cloudy. The possibility of morning fog. Very high probability of showers, more likely in the afternoon and evening. The possibility of a storm. Light winds that will reach the southeast at 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon and then tend south at 15 to 25 km/h in the late afternoon. Min 15. Max 23.
Thursday: Cloudy. High chance of rain, probably in the morning. Winds from the south at 20 to 30 km/h turning from the east to southeast at 15 to 20 km/h during the day. Min 13. Max 17.
Friday: Cloudy. Little chance of rain. East winds of 15 to 25 km/h becoming light during the afternoon. Min 12. Max 19.
Canberra
Wednesday: Cloudy. Very high chance of rain, more likely in the afternoon and evening. The possibility of a storm. Winds will be light from the northwest at 25 to 35 km/h in the morning and become light in the late afternoon. Min 17. Max 29.
Thursday: Partly cloudy. Average chance of showers. The possibility of a storm. The winds will be light, from the northwest, 15 to 20 km/h in the middle of the day and will become light at night. Min 15. Max 31.
Friday: Cloudy. Very high chance of rain, more likely in the afternoon and evening. The possibility of a storm. Light easterly winds at 15 to 20 km/h overnight. Min 16. Max 25.
Electricity demand is expected to increase by five percent on Wednesday, the most since June, due to high temperatures (pictured, forecast for midday Wednesday)
Darwin
Wednesday: Partly cloudy. High probability of rain, more likely in the late morning and afternoon. The possibility of a storm. Light winds. Min 25. Max 32.
Thursday: Partly cloudy. High probability of rain, more likely in the late morning and afternoon. The possibility of a storm. Light winds. Min 26. Max 33.
Friday: Partly cloudy. Average chance of showers, more likely in the afternoon. The possibility of a storm. Light winds. Min 26. Max 33.