An early heat wave has led to record energy demand in the region and scattered power outages. And according to the latest weather report, there appears to be little relief in sight. 

The National Weather Service is predicting a cold front late Wednesday, but temperatures will quickly rebound to triple digits. 

Outages for Memphis Light, Gas and Water customers since the beginning of the heat wave peaked on June 13, when 8,400 people — about 2% of customers — were without power.

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MLGW said the outages were “only for a short amount of time.” 

As of Tuesday morning, that number had dropped to about 450 customers. 

The Tennessee Valley Authority, which supplies the local utility with electricity, reported record demand region-wide for the month of June on the same day that MLGW outages peaked, and then surpassed that record three days later. 

The new June record is 31,617 megawatts — about 500 megawatts higher than the previous record set a decade ago. TVA’s all-time demand record is 33,482 megawatts in August 2007, when temperatures in the region averaged 102 degrees Fahrenheit.

MLGW’s electric load typically peaks around 5 p.m. when customers get home and turn down their thermostats. Air conditioning load increases between 1% and 9% for every 2-degree Fahrenheit increase in temperature. 

The Tennessee Valley Authority encourages customers to unplug electronics when not in use, set thermostats to 75 degrees or higher, close window coverings and avoid using major appliances during peak hours between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to conserve energy and reduce costs.

A 2020 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study reported an annual average of 702 heat-related deaths, but the number is likely underreported since hospitals and health care providers are not required to report heat-related illnesses to public health agencies.

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The greatest risk for heat-related illness is among infants and the elderly, as well as people who are low-income, socially isolated, overweight or have existing medical conditions like diabetes or heart disease.

MLGW has weather-related moratoriums on disconnections of services during extreme weather conditions based on forecasts from the National Weather Service. 

When the heat index forecast is 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher at any time during a 24-hour period, MLGW enters a moratorium.

For customers who are aged 60 years or older, disabled or certified as dependent on life support in their home, that threshold is 95 degrees Fahrenheit or higher at any time in a 24-hour period. 

Some power companies in the state have temporarily halted disconnections due to missed payments, like Nashville Electric Services, which has stopped disconnections for all customers until July 1. 

MLGW said in a statement that it “already has delayed payment options to assist customers” to avoid disconnections and that there are few instances where a customer will not qualify for a payment arrangement. 

About 7,700 MLGW customers have requested an extension of their bills since June 13. 

Residents concerned about the cost of future power bills because of higher temperatures can contact MLGW to request an extension, explore assistance programs or enter into a payment agreement to avoid disconnection. 

MLGW established an Outage Improvement Advisory Team after the February 2022 ice storm that resulted in outages for more than half of customers. 

The team of 51 community stakeholders held its fourth and final meeting on June 16, and shared plans to replace aging lines and upgrade communication to customers during outages, including text notifications, traditional media and outage predictive software. 

At that final meeting, the team shared that Shelby Forest experienced the longest outages on average between 2005 and 2018 in Shelby County, followed by Westwood, Whitehaven, Castalia Heights, Orange Mound and Parkway Village.