Two ice storms that hit the Fraser Valley area have caused hundreds of individual power outages and affected over 100,000 customers. As of 8 a.m. Saturday, there were 36,000 customers without power and 82,000 have been restored. The hardest hit areas are Abbotsford and Mission.
Freezing rain adds weight to branches and trees. This results in them breaking and coming into contact with BC Hydro’s electrical equipment. Difficult and dangerous conditions – icy roads, poor visibility, and falling trees – and extensive damage have created challenges for crews, said a BC Hydro press release.
Maple Ridge escaped most of the problems, but there are outages in the Whonnock area, caused by trees down across wires, which have left about 40 customers without power.
Restoration efforts will continue throughout the day. Crews have been brought in from the Southern Interior and Vancouver Island to assist with repair work.
Crews are 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 crews will work together with first responders to make the area safe.
BC Hydro appreciates its customers’ patience as repair work continues and will provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available atbchydro.com/outages.