Lubbock Could Hit 100 Degrees Or Higher The Rest of July
It's hot across Texas and I mean really, really hot. Across the state, cities are seeing record high temperatures and some cities are already look at setting a record or getting close to setting a record for the number of days total for 100 degree or high temperatures in a year. By the way, the record number for Lubbock is 48 days at or above 100 degrees.
For Lubbock, triple digit temperatures aren't going away anytime soon. In fact, it's very possible that Lubbock will see high temperatures hit 100 degrees the rest of the month of July.
Of course, long-range forecasts are never 100% reliable, but when looking at the Weather Channel's long range outlook for Lubbock, rain chances are sparse and temperatures will hover around 100 degrees. The average high for Lubbock this time of year is in the mid-90's but hitting triple digits isn't out of the ordinary.
Unless you've been living under a very hot rock, you know that the statewide heat has impacted the power grid to the point where ERCOT has asked twice this week for consumers to cut back on electricity. According to KHOU, the ERCOT CEO didn't think this summer would be this hot, and he is concerned about some of the older power generators in the state.
In that interview, ERCOT Interim CEO Brad Jones says he is concerned about some of the state's older power generators keeping up with the record demand for power this summer.
Jones said the extreme heat scenario for this summer estimated that demand could reach above 81,000 megawatts, which was the original forecast for Monday. Originally, forecasters gave that a 5 percent chance of happening, according to Jones.
"The 81,500 (megawatts) was the extreme, but those numbers are in the system. We just start with what we think the expected case is, and in early May, the expected case was 77,500" megawatts, he said.
It's going to be a long hot summer and we still have a ways to go before cooler temperatures move in. At this point, people in Lubbock and throughout Texas would settle for highs in the 90's.