3 p.m.
Power is back on to nearly 10,000 BC Hydro customers in Port Coquitlam.
Crews have worked since Tuesday night (Nov. 29) to remove trees that went down on wires resulting from wind and about 20 cm of heavy snowfall, which left properties and businesses in the dark overnight.
As of this publication (Nov. 30), slightly more than 100 households in the Riverbend Drive area are still without electricity.
This includes:
- West of Elgin Avenue
- East of Lougheed Highway
- South of Kingsway Avenue
- North of Kelley Avenue
BC Hydro is predicting power to come back on by 6:30 p.m. tonight.
"Unlike a traditional windstorm where power outages often occur rapidly, snowstorms can present unique challenges because of the time it takes for snow to weigh down trees and branches, causing them to fall onto electrical equipment at a slower, more sporadic pace. Because of this, there were hundreds of smaller repair jobs, and outage numbers spiked today even though the storm has calmed," BC Hydro spokesperson Susie Rieder said in a release.
"BC Hydro is also receiving reports of downed lines and is reminding customers to stay back 10 metres and dial 911 should they encounter a downed line."
For more information, you can visit the provincial company's website.
9:20 a.m.
It appears most Tri-Cities residences and businesses have their power back after experiencing power outages from last night's snow storm.
However, Port Coquitlam is reeling in the effects of the heavy snowfall as almost 10,000 BC Hydro customers are still without electricity this morning.
A couple of dozen properties in Coquitlam are also in the dark, but crews are still working to restore power.
According to BC Hydro, there were roughly 19,000 Tri-Cities customers that endured a blackout Tuesday night, but most power came back on while residents were sleeping.
This included about 8,400 in Coquitlam, 6,000 in Port Coquitlam and 4,700 in Port Moody, while the villages of Anmore and Belcarra recorded a combined 165 households that lost power during the storm.
In Port Coquitlam, the areas still without power include those living....
- North of Argue Street
- West of Brown Street
- Southeast of Lougheed Highway
- East of Tatla Place
- West of Elgin Avenue
- South of Kingsway Avenue
- North of Kelly Avenue
As of this publication, crews have been assigned to all outages, BC Hydro explains, but there's currently no estimated time of when power could be restored.
Environment Canada predicted roughly 25 cm of snow to fall at higher levels of the region, causing trees to break coupled with winds gusting between 40 and 70 km/h.
"Snow adds weight to trees and branches and can result in them breaking and coming into contact with electrical equipment," a statement from BC Hydro reads.
"Crews are busy replacing power lines, power poles and other electrical equipment.
"BC Hydro understands that outages are disruptive and appreciates customers’ patience as crews work to access trouble spots as quickly as possible."
In total, the company worked through the night to restore power to more than 30,000 households and businesses in B.C. following the heavy snowfall.
