BC Hydro crews work to repair damage in midst of windstorm
January 14, 6:30 a.m. update
BC Hydro restores power to 97 per cent of customers impacted by windstorm
BC Hydro crews have restored power to 220,000 of the customers impacted by the windstorm that hit Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, the Lower Mainland and the Southern Interior.
Crews have been working around-the-clock to restore power, replacing hundreds of spans of power line and replacing dozens of power poles, transformers and cross-arms.
Crews will continue to work throughout the day and expect to have all remaining customers restored today.
BC Hydro appreciates its customers’ patience and will provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available at bchydro.com/outages.
January 13, 5 p.m. update
BC Hydro restores power to 190,000 customers impacted by windstorm
BC Hydro crews have restored power to 86 per cent of 220,000 customers who experienced outages as a result of the storm that hit Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, the Lower Mainland and the Southern Interior.
As of 5 p.m., about 30,000 customers are without power:
- About 13,900 in the Lower Mainland.
- About 6,700 on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.
- About 9,300 in the Southern Interior.
BC Hydro has all available crews and contractor crews working around-the-clock to restore power; however, the damage is extensive. Crews are hard at work repairing or replacing damaged power lines, power poles and transformers.
At this time, BC Hydro anticipates the vast majority of its customers will have power tonight; however, some small pockets in each region will be without power overnight due to the extensive damage.
BC Hydro appreciates its customers’ patience as repair work continues and will provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available at bchydro.com/outages.
January 13, 11:30 a.m. update
BC Hydro restores power to 67 per cent of customers impacted by windstorm
BC Hydro crews continue to make good progress and have restored power to more than 142,000 customers of the 212,000 customers impacted by the windstorm on Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, Lower Mainland and the Southern Interior.
Around 70,000 customers remain without power:
- About 30,000 in the Lower Mainland primarily in Abbotsford and Chilliwack.
- About 15,000 on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands primarily in Victoria and Duncan.
- About 25,000 in the Southern Interior primarily in Vernon.
There is extensive damage caused by branches and trees breaking and coming into contact with BC Hydro’s electrical infrastructure. Planning through the night ensured all available BC Hydro crews and contractor crews have been mobilized. They will continue working around-the-clock to repair damaged power lines, poles and transformers to restore the power.
BC Hydro appreciates its customers’ patience as repair work continues and will provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available at bchydro.com/outages.
January 13, 7 a.m. update
BC Hydro crews work to repair damage in midst of windstorm
VANCOUVER: Strong winds have left about 100,000 customers without power in the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and the Southern Interior this morning. The hardest hit areas are Abbotsford, Victoria and Vernon.
As the storm is moving its way across the province, its causing extensive damage to BC Hydro’s electrical system due to branches and trees breaking contacting its equipment. More outages are expected as a result of the wind.
All available resources will continue to work throughout the day to safely restore power.
BC Hydro is also receiving reports of downed power lines. A downed power line is considered an emergency situation and members of the public should stay at least 10 metres back and call 911 immediately.
BC Hydro appreciates its customers’ patience as repair work continues and will provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available at bchydro.com/outages.