BC Hydro says a snowstorm and winter conditions are to blame for close to 3,000 power outages on the Sunshine Coast.
They say the storm passed through the area last night between 9:30 and 10 o’clock. The Manager for community relations on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast Ted Olynyk says the amount of people without power is still going up.
“We are still getting calls coming in as a result of the storm,” he says. “Heavy west coast snow is bringing down branches and trees onto power lines.”
While they have crews working on restoring power, Olynyk says it could take time to fully restore everyone.
“We have all the crews we can muster, but we anticipate we will get all the large outages up,” he says. “We still have to get the smaller ones which may not be tonight, it all depends on the damage the crews see when they arrive.”
He says keeping the area safe is the top priority and residents should stay clear of downed lines because they could still have power in them.
“Stay 10 feet away, the line may still be energized,” Olynyk says. “We could be trying to restore power remotely, but more importantly lines never lose their charge when they hit the ground.”
