Trenton, NJ – As Americans celebrate the nation’s 250th Independence Day, more than 1.1 million utility customers across the United States are without electricity after severe thunderstorms and extreme heat battered much of the Midwest and Northeast.
According to the U.S. PowerOutage.us tracking system, the largest outages are concentrated in states hit by powerful, heat-fueled storms that swept from the Chicago area through New Jersey and New York.
Governor Mikie Sherrill has been nowhere to be found since last night’s storms, only advising residents of the obvious: If your power is out, call your electric company.
Power for me and not for thee: PJM has asked for and received a special request to focus on keep power to America’s datacenters.
New Jersey and Michigan Hit Hardest
As of Saturday morning, the states with the largest reported outages included:
- Michigan: Approximately 495,000 customers
- New Jersey: Approximately 257,000 customers
- Pennsylvania: Approximately 90,000 customers
- Illinois: Approximately 56,000 customers
Because utility outage maps count customer accounts rather than individuals, the actual number of people affected is substantially higher.
In New Jersey, utility crews continued restoring service after Friday night’s storms brought damaging winds, heavy rain, and widespread tree and power line damage. Thousands of residents faced a Fourth of July with no air conditioning as temperatures climbed toward 100 degrees.
Grid operators prepare for record demand
The widespread outages come as PJM Interconnection, which operates the electric grid serving all or parts of 13 states and the District of Columbia, activated emergency procedures this week to prepare for exceptionally high electricity demand during the prolonged heat wave.
PJM issued a Hot Weather Alert through at least July 4 and extended Maximum Generation and Load Management Alerts to increase available electric generation and prepare demand response resources.
On July 2, PJM also activated its pre-emergency demand response program, which compensates participating customers in advance for reducing electricity use during periods of peak demand to help maintain grid reliability.
The grid operator forecast electricity demand would reach 166,241 megawatts on July 2, surpassing PJM’s previous record peak of 165,563 megawatts set in 2006.
Emergency measures include backup generation
Federal officials also approved emergency measures requested by PJM to help maintain grid stability during the heat wave.
The U.S. Department of Energy authorized transmission operators, if necessary as a last resort before voltage reductions or controlled outages, to require certain large electricity users, including data centers with backup generation, to switch to their own generators.
The department also temporarily waived some environmental operating restrictions for certain power plants through July 3 to maximize available electricity generation during the period of extreme demand.
Editorial: Reliability matters
The combination of widespread storm-related outages and emergency grid conservation measures highlights the growing importance of electric system reliability as demand continues to increase.
For families spending the Fourth of July without power, the immediate concern is not energy policy but restoring electricity for air conditioning, refrigeration, and essential household needs during dangerous heat.
The events of this holiday weekend underscore that expanding electricity demand—whether from population growth, electrification, industry, or emerging technologies—must be matched by investments in generation, transmission, and grid resilience to ensure reliable service during both extreme weather and periods of peak consumption.
Key Points
- More than 1.1 million U.S. utility customers were without power Saturday following severe storms and extreme heat.
- New Jersey ranked among the hardest-hit states with approximately 257,000 customers affected.
- PJM activated emergency demand response and other reliability measures as electricity demand reached near-record levels during the holiday heat wave.
