Edited by: Gianna Myrat
To avoid a meltdown, officials are recommending that people cut back on energy consumption.
ADVERTISING SPACE
With scorching temperatures hitting the Big Apple this week, City Hall urged New Yorkers to avoid using large appliances and set air conditioners to 25-26 degrees (Celsius).
Meanwhile, energy services giant Con Edison has once again advised city dwellers to limit their energy use to “keep service reliable” – especially during peak hours between 2 and 10 p.m.
ADVERTISING SPACE
The advisories quickly came under fire on Tuesday, when the mercury reached nearly 38 degrees Celsius.
“I think it’s bullshit,” Ahmed N., 23, told The Post while walking his dog in Herbert Von King Park in Bedford-Stuyvesant. “Fighting a collective problem like climate change should not be a personal responsibility.”
“It’s hot regardless, A/C or not,” added Art J., 29, who was waiting for a cooling center to open near the park. “It’s very hot, so we need it all day.”
James Harris, 63, who lives in a building with a cooling center in the basement, said the cooling center was his lifeline – and he wasn’t about to give up his breeze.
“I don’t even have air conditioning,” he said. “To ask people to limit A/C when people don’t even have … I don’t like that, it’s unfair.”
ConEd first issued the curtailment advisory in a warning on July 7 and reissued that guidance in a message sent to customers late Monday morning.
Energy-saving methods such as turning off air conditioners will help prevent blackouts and overloading the power grid, Mayor Eric Adams said during a news conference Monday.
Later, the Mayor urged city dwellers via X to “avoid using large appliances like washers and dryers” and “turn your air conditioner to 25-26 degrees and on low” to “keep everyone’s A/C to operate safely”.
“We will monitor the electrical system,” he noted at the press conference. “The system may be stressed, and as temperatures rise, we urge New Yorkers to be mindful of their energy consumption.”
At Herbert Von King Park, Paige M., 28, told The Post the city should instead be “turning things off that aren’t being used.”
What was her brief reaction to ConEd and the mayor’s demand to reduce energy consumption? “Mal@kies”.
“They don’t need the lights in Times Square,” said Candace Lowe, 35, outside the Louis Armstrong Center. “He (Adams) should be turning them off. If not, then he’ll have to pay our bills.”
The seasonal call to shut down Times Square is nothing new: New Yorkers have been calling for the power to stop for years. “If you really care about saving energy, then … close Times Square to tourists,” Ahmed N. added.
However, Times Square is on its own grid, meaning reduced power at the Crossroads of the World will not affect residents in other neighborhoods, a ConEd spokesperson told The Post. Businesses in Times Square have also been asked to conserve energy, the spokesman said.
While Times Square won’t be gone anytime soon, more than 600 buildings have already reduced their energy consumption, the equivalent of powering up 12 Empire State Buildings, Adams said Monday.
Wednesday will still be near the 38C mark, but the thermometer is expected to drop into the 90s with a “couple of scattered thunderstorms each day”.
Those experiencing power outages – or just looking to save money on a ConEd bill – can find shelter at one of more than 500 cooling centers across the five boroughs.
The beaches will also be open from 10am to 6pm. daily, and hours at Olympic and intermediate pools will be extended from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. at least until Wednesday. Other pools are open until 7pm. Some pools, however, are closed due to staffing issues.
“This heat is not normal,” Adams added. “Climate change is real and a clear and present danger.”
However, historic heatwaves in New York have also been recorded in the long past. To convert the temperatures you see in the image below from F to C, divide by two and subtract the number 12 – e.g. 100 F is 100/2 – 12 = 38 degrees Celsius.
Historic heatwaves in New York
Source: www.zougla.gr
