Thousands of Coloradans find smart thermostats locked due to 'energy emergency'

Thousands of Colorado residents were unable to control the temperature of their homes after they were locked out of their smart thermostats due to an "energy emergency." 

Xcel Energy customers in Pueblo, Colorado who opted into the company's AC Rewards program, which offers a $100 enrollment bill credit and $25 annually, received a notification last week that they were locked out of temperature controls.

"It's a voluntary program. Let's remember that this is something that customers choose to be a part of based on the incentives," Xcel executive Emmett Romine told local ABC 7 Denver. The company confirmed that 22,000 customers were locked out of their smart thermostats for several hours Tuesday as temperatures climbed into the 90s. 

Some customers were unable to put their thermostats below 78 degrees, while others reported that their homes reached temperatures as high as 88.

Romine said this is the first time in the program's history that customers were unable to override their thermostats. He said the "energy emergency" was caused by an unexpected outage in Pueblo along with the heat and heavy air conditioner usage.