Crews restoring power

BC Hydro crews are working hard to restore power in a small area of Tsawwassen due to a tree that came down on hydro wires during Tuesday night’s windstorm.

According to the BC Hydro website, the area affected is east of Tsatsu Shores Dr., West of 40^th St., south of Tsawwassen Dr., and North of Glenwood Place.

Customers affected are 479. The power went off at 8:05 p.m. with an estimated restoration time of 7 p.m. tonight (Nov. 20).

BC Hydro spokesperson Mora Scott provided an overall update on the situation across the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island mid-morning on Wednesday.

Scott said of the more than 300,000 customers impacted since last night, more than 210,000 customers have been restored. However, with strong winds expected to continue today in some areas, particularly on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast, further outages are expected.

She said as of 11:30 a.m., about 90,000 customers are without power. The majority – about 80,000 – are on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. The hardest hit areas are currently Nanaimo, Victoria, Duncan, Ladysmith and Port Hardy.

“Drought-damaged trees and branches came down on electrical equipment during the windstorm causing extensive damage,” Scott said. “BC Hydro has had all available BC Hydro crews and contractor crews working since last night, and work will continue throughout the day. Resources will be brought over from the Lower Mainland to support restoration efforts on Vancouver Island today as well.”

She said crews are busy replacing power lines, poles and other equipment to get as many customers restored as quickly as possible.

“They have, however, encountered access challenges due to the heavy debris on some roads. In some areas, the strong winds have made it too unsafe to begin work, and crews will begin restoration work as soon as the conditions improve,” said Scott. “Crews are receiving reports of downed power lines. A downed power line is an emergency. Call 911 and stay at least 10 metres back. BC Hydro crews will work with first responders to make the area safe.

“Crews will continue to work around-the-clock until all customers are restored.”

BC Hydro wants to thank its customers for their patience, and it will continue to provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available at bchydro.com/outages.