Thousands of people across Quebec are still without power after high winds and freezing rain on Monday left ice accumulated on trees and knocked down power lines.
As of 8 p.m. Wednesday, Hydro-Quebec’s website says more than 30,000 customers are still without power, most of them in the Lanaudière, Basses-Laurentides and Laval regions north of Montreal.
READ MORE: Power still not restored for most homes after freezing rain, snow
The utility says more than 313,000 customers were in the dark at the height of the outage of Monday.
Hydro-Quebec says not all residents will see their power restored before Thursday morning.
Speaking to reporters in Quebec City, Premier François Legault thanked Hydro-Quebec crews whom he said worked through the night in difficult conditions.
“We should be able to fix the large majority of power outages by tonight,” Legault said.
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Hydro-Quebec says more than 1,000 workers have been “doing their best to restore power as soon as possible,” but without a break in the weather some areas may not see their service restored until Thursday.
Speaking in Quebec City on Tuesday, the province’s public safety minister said winds and snow were creating problems for the Hydro-Quebec crews dispatched to hard-hit regions.
READ MORE: Freezing rain prompts power outages across southern Quebec
Legault called on people to exercise caution and get in touch with their towns if they need a place to stay.
“There are many families in Quebec who risk spending a second night without electricity, so I’m asking everyone to be prudent,” Legault said Tuesday.
He asked people experiencing outages to exercise caution after 10 people were taken to hospital Tuesday night suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning after using barbecues indoors.
Louis-Philippe Dorais, a spokesperson for the City of Laval, said Wednesday about 25 residents with symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning reported to the hospital. Of them, seven had to receive medical care.
Fire officials have also reported 17 fires caused by candles or generators too close to homes.
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Officials in Laval, a densely populated suburb just north of Montreal, said Tuesday that police were patrolling the city as phone service was down in some neighbourhoods.
Sylvain Gariepy, operations chief for the Laval fire department, said firefighters went door-to-door to check on seniors and other vulnerable people.
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Laval Mayor Marc Demers urged families and neighbours to look out for one another.
“If you have members of your family — parents, brothers, sisters — who are in a zone that’s lacking electricity, check in on their situation to make sure we’re not forgetting someone in distress,” Demers said.
Gariepy warned people of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning from barbecues and generators.
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Four adults and five children were taken to hospital in three separate cases after using barbecues indoors or having generators too close to their homes.
Firefighters reported high levels of carbon monoxide in the homes in each case, but no major injuries were reported.
READ MORE: Ongoing power outages leave many Laval schools closed
“Another family was taken to the hospital today — three children and a mother,” Gariepy said Tuesday afternoon.
“The problem we’re dealing with is people are putting barbecues in their house to heat or eat, they’re using propane stoves or putting generators too close to the house.”
The City of Laval opened up two community centres for residents needing a place to stay warm, charge phones or have a shower.
READ MORE: ‘Don’t risk it’: Laval police urge residents without power to seek shelter
About 130 people were staying at the two temporary shelters. Numerous schools were closed in the region due to the lack of electricity.
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— With files from Global News’ Tim Sargeant