Toronto Hydro is stepping up to help with restoration efforts in Florida following Hurricane Irma’s destructive path.
A crew of 30 employees will depart from Toronto’s Etobicoke facility on Tuesday morning, bound for Tampa, Fla.
READ MORE: Canadians who were barred from flight leaving Irma-ravaged Turks and Caicos cleared to fly home
Utility officials believe it could take weeks to restore electricity after Hurricane Irma had made landfall in the U.S. on Sunday. Irma has now been categorized as a Tropical Storm.
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It’s estimated nearly 13 million Florida residents remain without power, which is about two-thirds of the state’s population. An earlier estimate had pegged the number of homes and businesses without power at 4.5 million.
The Toronto workers will join 175 employees from Hydro One, Ontario’s largest electricity distribution system, that have also agreed to help.
The Hydro One crews crossed the border into the U.S. Monday evening and are expected to arrive at the affected areas by Wednesday afternoon.
On Monday evening, Tampa Electric made a request for 6,000 crews to help rebuild their system, according to a Facebook post.
With files from The Canadian Press.
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