Frequent power failures in Montreal borough inspire frightful Halloween display

This year’s frequent power outages in Montreal’s Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood have inspired one family’s head-turning Halloween decor.

Jean-Francois Cloutier and his wife Mitra Cowan have done it again with their latest tongue-in-cheek display.

“If you can find the decor that hits the interests of people in the neighborhood then it’s going to be a hit,” Cloutier said.

The scene on their front lawn along Monkland Avenue shows two skeleton Hydro-Québec workers trying to establish power while an other sits in a electric chair.

One work even has a thought blurb that says, “Maybe we should have buried the lines.”

1:57 Hydro crews hard at work getting the power back on across Southern Quebec

The social commentary display is hitting close to home, with neighbours stopping to take pictures.

“You want to laugh at these things. After time it gets easier to laugh at ourselves, laugh at the whole situation and say, ‘Hey, we got through it,'” Cowan said.

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“It’s in good fun. It’s really playful.”

The couple have their finger on the pulse when it comes to comedic gold.

In 2018 their Halloween decorations featuring construction workers made headlines because of gripes over the Turcot interchange work being done.

Hydro-Québec officials would not comment on this year’s display but said they are aware of the ongoing power failures in the area.

They say NDG has the oldest tree canopy in the city. Falling branches often tear down power lines during strong winds and storms.

“It needs to be said: 2023 has been an unmatched year for Hydro-Québec when it comes to storms, ” spokesperson Geneviève Frotin-Blanchard said.

The borough has seen more than 70 hours of power outages since January, according to Frotin-Blanchard, the majority occurring during the devastating ice storm.

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One of the biggest issues, according to the Crown corporation, is the aging infrastructure.

The Hampstead substation that transforms high voltage for home use in the neighbourhood is at the end of its life.

Frotin-Blanchard says Hydro-Québec is in the process of maintaining the station.

The substation won’t be fully replaced until 2026.