SOUTH BOSTON, Mass. (WHDH) — It’s challenging enough to stay cool during the heat wave – but four-thousand people were without power in Boston Wednesday night.
The lights were back on in South Boston Thursday morning but a blackout there meant a lot of people didn’t have air conditioning Wednesday night and early Thursday.
A manhole explosion had NStar crews working into the night in South Boston.
That explosion happened late Wednesday night on West First Street, between B and C streets.
Crews said the explosion did not cause a fire and no one was hurt – but it did knock out power for neighbors.
According to NStar, the issue may have been related to more people using power, during the heat wave.
In the meantime, ISO-New England predicted power usage Thursday could be the highest it’s been in nearly seven years.
ISO-New England said the one-day record for power use is more than 28,000 megawatts, which was set in August of 2006.
Officials believed the region could come close to that on Thursday.
ISO-New England had some tips to conserve energy during the heat wave.
Conservation Tips
-Raise AC thermostats to between 74-78 degrees
-Turn off unneeded lights between 12pm-8pm
-Put off laundry & chores until early morning/late evening, when the demand for energy is often lower
The heat wave has also been producing smog and unhealthy air that may continue into the weekend.