Thousands of British Columbians were in the dark Tuesday night and into the early morning hours of Wednesday because of a windstorm that slammed into the south coast.
B.C. Hydro says at one point, almost 17,000 people were without power, with most on the Lower Mainland. About 9,500 customers are still without power Wednesday morning, both in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island.
Spokesperson Mora Scott says crews and contractors have been prepared to work around the clock.
“With a windstorm, we see a lot of trees and branches come down onto our lines, and that can cause damage to the power lines, the power poles and the transformers, so that’s what’s keeping the crews busy.”
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She says the goal is to get power restored as quickly as possible.
At 4:30 Wednesday morning, Environment Canada took down the Wind Warning for Metro Vancouver, Howe Sound, Greater Victoria, and the southern Gulf Islands.
Global News meteorologist Mark Madryga says the worst is over.
“The gustiness last evening and overnight is thanks to a front that blasted through the Lower Mainland. It’s now moved to the east. Still gusty today but not nearly as windy as last night. We’ll look for winds up to around to 30 to 35 km/h for the day today, versus the 60 to 70 km/h winds we had last night and overnight in Metro Vancouver. Highest winds on the south coast look to be on Saturna Island late last evening, with gusts to 109 km/h.”
Tuesday night, BC Ferries had to cancel two sailings due to the high winds.
Ferries are running again Wednesday morning but some routes are delayed due to the weather. Passengers are urged to check the BC Ferries website for more details.