The extreme heat is knocking out the electricity grid, causing dozens of blackouts in Turin, as well as blackouts in parts of Milan.

Extreme heat has caused widespread power outages in Turin, with dozens of blackouts reported over the past few days. The situation has also affected parts of Milan, where sporadic power cuts have been recorded in recent days due to record temperatures. In Turin, entire neighborhoods have experienced prolonged periods without electricity, some lasting more than fifteen hours, causing significant disruption to both residential areas and businesses, particularly affecting elderly residents and vulnerable individuals.

In the last four days alone, at least twenty blackouts have occurred in Turin according to reports from La Stampa. These incidents have impacted various parts of the city, including the center, where several stores had their lighting systems fail and alarms went off. Even the City Hall, which hosted a heated debate in the municipal council about the issue of blackouts, was left in darkness for approximately twenty minutes during lunchtime when many people were out for their midday break.

Ireti, the company under the Iren Group responsible for distributing electricity, natural gas, and water, responded by deploying an auxiliary generator in Piazza Castello. However, this measure proved insufficient to resolve the underlying issues. In the northern part of the city, specifically in the Borgo Vittoria neighborhood, the blackout lasted over fifteen hours, leading to considerable inconvenience for both commercial activities and households.

The exceptional and prolonged heatwave in May led to the overheating of asphalt and the ground beneath it, where electrical cables are buried, resulting in damaged underground cables. Simultaneously, the intensive use of air conditioning systems increased electricity consumption by thirty percent. As the ground heats up, the capacity of the cable to carry current decreases, leading to situations where the demand for electricity exceeds the supply, causing the cables to operate under overload conditions. This explanation came from Chiara Foglietta, the municipal assessor for Environment, who addressed the council after opposition inquiries. She mentioned having requested updates from Ireti following the initial disruptions in May, and Ireti stated they had initiated a gradual increase in investments with an industrial plan forecasting spending of 515 million euros on the city's electrical network between 2025 and 2030.

Recent data indicates that energy demand reached nearly 440 MW daily last Friday, compared to 300 MW the previous week, representing a forty percent increase.

Power failures and related inconveniences have also been reported in Milan, where electricity was cut off in certain districts on Tuesday afternoon, June 23rd. Specifically, after 2 PM, a series of power plants failed, leaving entire neighborhoods in the areas of Fiera, Gallaratese, San Siro, Baggio, and Quarto Oggiaro without electricity. The sudden halt in electricity prompted firefighters to respond to multiple calls, especially for people trapped in elevators. Overall, around 2000 users were affected by these service interruptions.

A particular incident in Grugliasco, a suburb of Turin, saw a section of the area plunged into darkness for fifteen hours, prompting local authorities to describe the situation as "everything has to be thrown away" due to the extensive damage and disruption caused. This highlights the severity of the impact of such power outages on communities, emphasizing the need for improved infrastructure resilience against extreme weather conditions.