LOS ANGELES — Thousands of Los Angeles residents were left without power Saturday morning after a heat wave prompted high electricity demand throughout the city.

“Friday’s record-setting heat led to unprecedented peak electricity demand,” according to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP). High demand caused power outages throughout city and left 34,500 customers in the dark — without fans or air conditioning.

The department said that figure accounts for about 2.5% of their 1.5 million customers.

Scorching heat has descended upon California and parts of the southwest after a heat wave swept across Canada earlier in the week, killing dozens in the province of Quebec, according to Canadian health officials.

Many areas in California on Friday broke their daily high temperature records, according to CNN meteorologists. Downtown Los Angeles reached a high of 108 degrees, breaking its previous daily record of 94 degrees, which was set in 1992.

UCLA also broke its previous daily temperature record, where thermometers read 111 degrees.

Since the start of the heat wave on Friday, LADWP has restored power to 14,500 customers, it said in a statement. But LADWP warned customers they should prepare to be without power for 12 to 24 hours, “and possibly even longer due to the high number of small localized outages.”

The peak energy demand level on Friday was 6,256 megawatts, LADWP said, a new record for a day in July, beating out the previous record of 6,165 megawatts, set on July 24, 2006.

LADWP also asked customers to reduce their electricity use throughout Saturday afternoon and into the evening.

“LADWP crews worked throughout the night to restore power and will work around the clock until every affected customer has service restored,” it added.

But according to CNN meteorologists, more daily high temperature records were expected to either be tied or broken on Saturday. Temperatures along the coast could reach up to 100 degrees, while those farther inland could see highs of up to 120 degrees.

More than 15 million people were under excessive heat warnings on Saturday throughout Southern California and Nevada.

The heat is also exacerbating conditions fueling wildfires in California, which have claimed one life and forced hundreds to evacuate from their homes. </s> (CNN) Thousands of Los Angeles residents were left without power Saturday morning after a heat wave prompted high electricity demand throughout the city.

"Friday's record-setting heat led to unprecedented peak electricity demand," according to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP). High demand caused power outages throughout city and left 34,500 customers in the dark -- without fans or air conditioning.

The department said that figure accounts for about 2.5% of their 1.5 million customers.

Scorching heat has descended upon California and parts of the southwest after a heat wave swept across Canada earlier in the week, killing dozens in the province of Quebec , according to Canadian health officials.

Many areas in California on Friday broke their daily high temperature records, according to CNN meteorologists. Downtown Los Angeles reached a high of 108 degrees, breaking its previous daily record of 94 degrees, which was set in 1992.

Read More </s> Some 34,500 Los Angeles Department of Water and Power customers experienced outages as of 8 a.m., according to the agency. Friday's record-breaking temperatures led to "unprecedented peak electricity demand" in the city, the department said.

"We have extra crews working hard on multiple outages during this heat storm. We really appreciate our customers’ patience and understanding," the the agency said in a tweet.

Some Twitter users said they have not had electricity for at least 12 hours.

At least 5,800 customers were impacted in Westlake, 4,400 in Koreatown, 2,000 in Beverly Grove and 3,000 in Encino, according to LADWP.

The agency urged residents to reduce their electricity use between 2 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Saturday.

Southern California Edison also reported power outages affecting more than 8,000 customers in L.A. County, 2,159 in Orange County and 1,251 in San Bernardino County.

The region had record-breaking heat on Friday, with downtown L.A., Burbank, Van Nuys and Woodland Hills reaching triple-digit temperatures.

Slightly lower temperatures were forecasted for the weekend. An excessive heat warning was set to expire at 9 p.m. Saturday. </s> LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Tens of thousands of people are still without power Sunday morning as Southern California swelters under record breaking heat.

The outages are scattered across the region in Los Angeles and Orange counties. Utility workers have been working throughout the night to restore electricity as fast as possible.

But the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power says it could take up to 48 hours or more to fully restore power.

In all, more than 37,000 DWP customers are without power and 9,600 SCE customers are also without power.

The DWP says Saturday’s demand is the second-highest of any weekend day in the city’s history. </s> (Reuters) - A fire at a receiving station in Los Angeles left 140,000 residents without power on Saturday after a second straight day marked by temperatures that exceeded 90 degrees (32 Celsius), power authorities said.

Crews were on site assisting fire department operations and assessing damage at the scene of the fire at Receiving Station J, in the North San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said in a statement.

Some 140,000 residential and commercial customers were left without power which was cut off at the station to allow crews to work on putting the fire out, the department said.

Thee was no word on when power might be restored, which would occur once the fire is out and the system is stabilized, said LADWP, which provides power to 1.6 million customers in the city of Los Angeles. </s> LOS ANGELES (AP) - Electricity was restored Sunday to tens of thousands of customers who lost service when a power station in suburban Los Angeles caught fire amid a blistering heat wave.

The LA Department of Water and Power said repairs continue but the outage ended by mid-morning.

Crews worked through the night to fix conductors, circuit breakers and transformers damaged in the blaze. The fire's cause is under investigation.

The Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles at twilight is blacked out, the only light coming from a laptop computer screen in a home, foreground, and from a few others with backup power, as the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said about 140,000 people are without electricity after the agency shut down a power station in the northeast San Fernando Valley that caught fire Saturday, July 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

At its height, the outage Saturday evening affected 140,000 customers in the northeast San Fernando Valley. Cooling centers were opened for residents left without air conditioning.

The fire at the station in the Northridge/Reseda area involved equipment that carries high-voltage electricity and distributes it at lower voltages, the department said.

The department shut off power to the station as a precautionary move, and began restoring service once the flames were out.

The outage came as much of California baked in heat that broke records. A record that stood 131 years in Los Angeles was snapped when the temperature spiked at 98 degrees downtown.

Shortly after the blaze broke out, crews found a huge container of mineral oil that is used to cool electrical equipment on fire, Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey said.

"These were fierce flames, with smoke towering more than 300 feet into the sky," he told the Los Angeles Times.

No one was injured.

Firefighters rescued people who were stranded in elevators, Humphrey said. </s> The intense heat wave that swept across Southern California Friday left many homes and neighborhoods in the dark while temps were still high.In Los Angeles County alone, nearly 14,000 customers were affected by 163 outages. In Orange County, a little more than 5,400 were without power in 82 outage areas. In the Inland Empire, more than 2,500 customers in Riverside were affected and 1,901 were affected in San Bernardino.From the San Fernando Valley to the San Gabriel Valley, there were transformers out that knocked out power to hundreds of people."My mother-in-law who hasn't been well is 93 and ended up going to the emergency room, which is before the power went out," Sherman Oaks resident Jim said.In one area, restaurant employees were watching as crews worked to fix blown power lines while the business was shuttered because of the power loss.There was a similar scene at The Grove, where an outage disrupted what was already a hot and busy night."Everything went out. This is way too hot, I'm trying to leave right now," Naif Alsharif said.In addition to the power outages, brush fires were sparked all over the Southland and heat records were broken.A brush fire forced evacuations for Forest Falls in San Bernardino County. The 1,000-acre blaze was 0 percent contained as of Friday night.The hot and very dry conditions nearly killed a hiker, who collapsed while climbing near Runyon Canyon. Thomas Frye Jr. spoke exclusively with Eyewitness News after he helped save the woman's life."She was gasping for air. She couldn't really breathe and she was just saying, 'I can't breathe. I can't breathe.' To the point where she fell over and said she had to vomit," he said.Thanks to Frye and his friend, she was able to get to safety. First responders airlifted the woman to a nearby hospital before it was too late.In Los Angeles, temperatures hit a high of 108, which is 14 degrees higher than the last record set. By nightfall, conditions did not get any better as the temperatures only dipped into the upper 90s.The worst of the intense heat wave is still ahead, with even hotter temperatures expected over the weekend.The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and SoCal Edison urge customers to conserve energy during the evening hours or turn air conditions to a higher and bearable temperature. </s> LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Latest on a power outage in Los Angeles (all times local):

Electricity has been restored to tens of thousands of customers who lost service when a power station in suburban Los Angeles caught fire amid a blistering heat wave.

The Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles at twilight is blacked out, the only light coming from a laptop computer screen in a home, foreground, and from a few others with backup power, as the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power said about 140,000 people are without electricity after the agency shut down a power station in the northeast San Fernando Valley that caught fire Saturday, July 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

The LA Department of Water and Power said Sunday morning that repairs continue but the outage has ended.

Crews worked through the night to fix conductors, circuit breakers and transformers damaged in the blaze. The fire's cause is under investigation.

At its height, the outage Saturday evening affected 140,000 customers in the northeast San Fernando Valley. Cooling centers were opened for residents left without air conditioning.

The department says the fire at the station in the Northridge/Reseda area involved equipment that carries high-voltage electricity and distributes it at lower voltages.

No one was injured.

Electricity is slowly being restored to tens of thousands of customers who lost service when a power station in suburban Los Angeles caught fire amid a blistering heat wave.

The LA Department of Water and Power says it hopes to restore electricity to all customers by late Sunday morning.

Crews worked through the night to repair conductors, circuit breakers and transformers damaged in the blaze. The fire's cause is under investigation.

At its height, the outage Saturday evening affected 140,000 customers in the northeast San Fernando Valley. Cooling centers were opened for residents left without air conditioning.

The department says the fire at the station in the Northridge/Reseda area involved equipment that carries high-voltage electricity and distributes it at lower voltages.

No one was injured. </s> More than 140,000 residents were left without power after a blaze at a power plant in Los Angeles.

Power had to be cut to allow firefighters to battle the fire at the Los Angeles department of water and power plant in North San Fernando Valley.

More than 80 firefighters fought the fire which broke out in a storage vault containing 50,000-60,000 gallons of mineral oil.

Local people reported the sound of an explosion but this has not been confirmed.

Much of the blaze on Saturday was out within two hours but firefighters were expected to stay at the scene to monitor possible flare-ups.

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Drivers in the area were advised to take extra care as many roads would be without lights due to the power outage.

Image: More than 80 firefighters fought the blaze

Officials were not able to say when power might be restored at the plant which serves 1.6 million customers in Los Angeles.

An employee said work was going on around the clock to restore power. He said: "It's got to be done. People are without power."

In a statement, the plant said: "The fire affected one portion of the receiving station, but as an emergency precautionary measure, power to and from the facility has been shut off while Los Angeles fire department personnel work to put the fire out.

Image: Firefighters battle the blaze

"As soon as possible, crews will assess damage at the station and begin the work of restoring power to affected customers."

The incident happened as Los Angeles recorded a second day of record high temperatures that exceeded 90F (32C).
High electricity demand during a heat wave in Los Angeles leaves 34,500 residents without power, some for up to 24 hours.