A violent windstorm whipped through Rossland Friday afternoon, blowing trees onto houses and power lines, and knocking out electricity to about 1300 customers.
The storm was over almost as soon as it began at about 4:30 Friday afternoon, but left a trail of devastation in its wake.
Roads were closed by fallen trees, power lines downed and a gas line ruptured.
There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Social media posts indicated gas service had been restored, at least in some areas of town by 9 p.m..
There were several reports of many fallen trees, including one large tree that fell near the Rossland Arena. A house was damaged by a fall on Union Ave in Lower Rossland.
Power to most areas had been restored by 9:00 p.m., though some residents were reporting they were still without power later than that.
Earlier in the day, Environment Canada had issued a wind warning for the Slocan and Arrow Lakes valleys, but this storm struck to the south and west of that area, as people in the town prepared for the weekend.
Strong winds caused widespread damage in multiple regions of the province on Friday, resulting in outages to around 120,500 BC Hydro customers.
SEE: Expect strong winds today as storm moves east and south
Rossland News will update this story as more information becomes available.
