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BC Hydro still working to restore electricity to 3,000 following ice storms

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. — About 3,000 people are still without power as crews worked to restore electricity after ice storms swept through British Columbia’s Fraser Valley.
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Ice coats tree branches as Christie Dornian, left, takes photographs while walking with her husband Mark Dornian in Chilliwack, B.C., on Monday. (Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS)

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. — About 3,000 people are still without power as crews worked to restore electricity after ice storms swept through British Columbia’s Fraser Valley.

BC Hydro spokeswoman Tanya Fish said teams have been working around the clock and have restored electricity for more than 100,000 people since the first storm hit on Thursday, but about 3,000 others were still without power by Monday morning.

Another storm came Friday, leaving the region coated in thick layers of ice, which snapped tree branches and downed power lines.

Some BC Hydro substations were also frozen solid, with sensitive equipment encased in ice.

Fish says crews finished repairs to the substations Saturday night using equipment like propane torches to melt the ice.