Evergy, BPU ready for extreme heat in Kansas City area

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The extreme heat hitting the Kansas City metro means increased electricity demand as people run their air conditioners.

The Kansas City area has already seen temperatures in the upper-90s, approaching 100 degrees with the heat index over 110 degrees. Those temperatures are expected to continue this week.

According to Evergy, the utility company has the capacity to meet all of its customers’ needs.

“Evergy plans for this. We know that every year we are going to be seeing extreme weather. It happens every year. It happens every summer. We make sure we have extra crews on hand, and we have the capacity,” Evergy spokesperson Courtney Lewis said.

Kansas City Board of Public Utilities said it’s also prepared to meet high energy demand.

Evergy said it performs seasonal maintenance work on its power plants and distribution systems during mild weather to help prepare for hotter temperatures.

But don’t be surprised if you or someone you know has an outage; those are common when it gets this hot.

“While we have seen some outages over the past few days, it’s been within normal expectations for extremely hot weather. Crews are responding quickly to restore power when outages occur,” Evergy VP Chuck Caisley said.

But at the same time, there’s also the human element of all of this. For example, on Sunday more than 1,400 customers were without power in Lawrence after a power pole was struck. At the same time the heat index was 133 degrees.

“It’s not the first time we’ve seen a driver crash into a utility pole. Unfortunately it happened when it was over 100 degrees,” Lewis said.

Evergy also works with the Southwest Power Pool, which coordinates generation resources for the region, according to Evergy.

Here’s a list Evergy has provided to save on your bill during the hot temperatures:

Cook with small appliances like air fryers and microwaves. Cooking with an oven can raise the temperature of a home.
Close blinds or curtains to keep the sun out of your home during the hottest parts of the day.
Turn ceiling fans counter clockwise to push cold air down.
Place draft-stopper in places where there could be gaps in exterior doors.
Make sure HVAC filter haves been changes for peak efficiency.

BPU also offered some tips for conserving energy:

Don’t cool an empty house. Set your thermostat higher when you are away.
Seal holes and cracks around doors and windows with caulk or weather
stripping.
Replace air filters monthly. Dirty filters make your air conditioner work harder.
Use a microwave or crockpot instead of the oven.
Operate appliances in the morning or evening when it is cooler outside.
When washing dishes or clothes, run full loads.
Wash laundry in cold water.
Close blinds and draperies facing the sun to keep out the sun’s heat.
Don’t cool unused rooms. Close the vents and shut the door.
Ceiling fans cool fast and cost less than air conditioning. In hot weather, set
your ceiling fan to spin quickly, counterclockwise to push air downward toward
the floor.