LANSING, Mich. — The Lansing Board of Water and Light is getting ready for possible rolling blackouts this summer. The board made the announcement in a press release on Tuesday.
The BWL is a part of a larger grid managed by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, also known as MISO. They control operations for 15 states.
Officials with BWL say MISO sent out a notice warning there could be possible energy shortages this summer when the weather gets hot. MISO believes the reasons behind these energy shortages are expected high summer temperatures, electric production facilities retiring and an increase in energy usage from the pandemic.
These shortages are referred to as load sheds.
"Load shedding is the deliberate shutdown of electric power in a part of a power-distribution system, generally to prevent the failure of the entire system, when the demand strains the capacity of the system," the release said.
But officials say they believe Michigan is in good shape, but they want to be prepared if they do get the notice for rolling blackouts.
"Which would consist of 30 minutes of notice from MISO, and we would turn off a select group of customers for 20 minutes at a time rolling through our service territory," BWL General Manager Dick Peffley said.
BWL says they are legally obligated to do this and will send out a statement, but customers won't receive notice prior to their outage for security reasons.
Crucial services like emergency responders and hospitals shouldn't be impacted.
Things you can do to help reduce energy demand:
- Limit or turn off air conditioners
- Turn off electronics or lights not being used
- Try cooking or during laundry later in the day
- Try charging your electric vehicles after dark
- Try using large uses of energy first thing in the morning or in the evening when its cooler.
Want to see more local news? Visit the FOX47News Website.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox.
Select from these options: Neighborhood News, Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines, and Daily Forecasts.
