UPDATE: Thursday, Jan. 21, 8 a.m.
Power has been restored to thousands of customers in the communities of Quesnel, Prince George, Vanderhoof and Fort St. James following a winter wind storm Jan. 19.
More than 11,000 hydro customers were without power over the past three days, with 97 outages in the Prince George area and 20 in the Quesnel area.
Five BC Hydro customers continue to be without power as on Thursday morning, Jan. 21 in an area north east of Fraser Lake. Cause of the outage is listed as ‘wire down’ and power is expected to be restored by 9 a.m.
UPDATE: Wednesday, Jan. 20, 8:30 a.m.
Power has been restored to most BC Hydro customers, but some are still without power.
“Crews made steady progress throughout the day and overnight restoring power to customers following the heavy winds yesterday,” an update in the morning of Wednesday, Jan. 20 read. “Crews will continue to work through the day on repairs and restoring customers without power.”
Power is still out in some areas of Prince George and Summit Lake.
ORIGINAL STORY:
Strong winds have knocked out power across much of Northern B.C.
According to BC Hydro the hardest hit areas include Vanderhoof, Fraser Lake, Fort St. James and Prince George.
“Crews will be working around the clock on restoration efforts but at this point we anticipate some customers in Vanderhoof, Fraser Lake and Fort St. James to be without power overnight,” a 3:40 p.m. update from BC Hydro’s website reads. “Please continue to check back for the latest information as it becomes available.”
Those areas aren’t the only one dealing with outages in Northern BC, as Bouchie Lake, and areas just north of Quesnel are also without power. Outages are present across much of Highway 16.
BC Hydro also provides a list of tips for dealing with an outage, noting a fridge can keep food cold for four hours, and a freezer can keep food frozen for up to 48 hours, if full.
They encourage people to check in on neighbours, especially the elderly, and ensure candles are in proper candle holders and never unattended.
Devices should be turned to airplane mode to keep battery longer.
After power returns, BC Hydro recommends avoiding immediately turning on all devices, to let the electrical system stabilize. Food supplies should be checked, clocks need to be reset, and emergency supplies should be replenished.
Up to date information on the outages can be found on BC Hydro’s website.
FROM THE ARCHIVES: PHOTOS: Flooding, downed lines causes power outage in West Quesnel
Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email: cassidy.dankochik@quesnelobserver.com
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