Watch: California Gov. Gavin Newsom provides COVID-19, energy shortage updates

California Gov. Gavin Newsom gave an update Monday to the state’s coronavirus containment efforts and attempts to avoid more blackouts experienced this weekend during a heat wave.

You can watch a recording of the press conference below:

Following a wave of triple-digit temperatures this weekend that forced blackouts for two nights, Newsom announced on Monday he was demanding an investigation into the power shutoffs. He also declared a state of emergency and is signing a proclamation that suspends air-pollution regulations so Californians can more easily use generators.

“These blackouts, which occurred without prior warning or enough time for preparation, are unacceptable and unbefitting of the nation’s largest and most innovative state,” Newsom wrote in a letter to the grid manager, the Energy Commission and Public Utilities Commission. “This cannot stand.”

With temperatures expected to remain above or near 100 degrees for the next week, shortages could be possible again.

The California Independent System Operator posted on its website Sunday that it would suspend “convergence bidding,” a form of power trading that the agency said has contributed to grid volatility.

“As a result of the record-breaking heat wave that has led to load curtailments, the California ISO has determined that convergence bidding is detrimentally (affecting) the ISO’s ability to maintain reliable grid operations,” the online notice read.

This story was originally published August 17, 2020 at 11:44 AM with the headline "Watch: California Gov. Gavin Newsom provides COVID-19, energy shortage updates."