The Sun is more than 145 million kilometers away from Earth.

This week, parts of San Diego County appeared to be thrown out of orbit around the sun and headed straight for the sun’s surface.

Thursday was the county’s hottest day in four years. Heat battered hospitals, burned playgrounds and cooked tents. Several neighborhoods saw their thermometers climb into triple digits: Escondido reached 104 degrees, as did Gillespie Field. Parts of El Cajon and Santee went even higher, while Ramona hit 111.

“High pressure is here to stay,” said Dan Munyan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “Temperatures will climb into the upper 90s and low 100s Monday, and there won’t be much relief at night.”

The agency has extended an extreme heat warning for areas east of Interstate 15 through Monday.

Good news? The air conditioning should continue to work.

“The power grid is currently stable,” the California Independent System Operator, which manages electricity flow across much of the state, said in a statement. Officials added that there are no plans to issue a Flex Alert asking residents to reduce their energy use.

That’s a change from two years ago. On September 6, 2022, California residents used more than 52,000 megawatts of electricity, a record high, and residents received nearly a dozen Flex Alerts throughout the year. By comparison, demand on Thursday afternoon hovered around 35,200 megawatts.

The state system operator has asked residents to “be ready in case we have to ask for voluntary energy conservation.”

However, thousands of people across the region are still left with little power.

More than 6,100 people were living in tents, vehicles or on the streets at the start of the year, and outreach workers have been scrambling to distribute bottled water. “We’re handing out cases and cases and cases,” said Bob McElroy, CEO of Alpha Project.

Tuesday Moon, an outreach worker with Father Joe’s Villages’ street health team, said they drive around multiple times a day offering hats, rechargeable fans and directions to shade. Though officials say the heat sends hundreds of people to emergency rooms across the county each year, Moon said she’s yet to have to call 911 for anyone she’s encountered.

The extreme heat also brought warnings for those working outside. State rules say workers must be able to get out of the sun when temperatures rise above 80 degrees, and water must be nearby.

Crews that clean streets and sidewalks have been particularly affected. “They’re trained to recognize signs of heat exhaustion and to look out for each other,” said Aaron Hunter, a spokesman for the California Department of Transportation. “The most important thing is to make sure they stay hydrated.”

High temperatures can be especially dangerous for children.

At schools across the region, teachers ushered students indoors. Outdoor play was out of the question. So were lunches. The Grossmont Union High School District in East County continues to weigh whether to cancel sports practices and games.

Officials across the county said all classrooms have air conditioning, though the age and quality of each system varies by school. Some leaders are aiming to pass bond measures in November to pay for further upgrades.

To stay cool, experts recommend, among other things, avoiding alcohol, wearing light clothing and moving slowly.

Many residents spent the day in one of the region’s designated “cool zones,” which can include public libraries.

“This space is really important,” Katie Keeley, a student at Grossmont College, said in the Santee library. “Most people are trying to get out of the house because they don’t have money to pay the electric bill.”

Contributor Paul Sisson contributed to this report.

Originally published: September 5, 2024 at 7:40 PM