Strong winds and heavy storms across British Columbia caused widespread power outages, with about 80,000 customers without electricity at the peak and about 30,000 still affected Saturday afternoon.
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Strong winds and heavy storms across British Columbia left tens of thousands of people without power Saturday as crews worked to restore service.
BC Hydro said about 80,000 customers were without electricity at the peak of Friday’s storm, and more than 190,000 customers experienced an outage since the storm began.
As of Saturday afternoon, about 30,000 customers remained without power, with BC Hydro warning that some customers are expected to stay offline overnight due to damage and access challenges.
BC Hydro cited Prince George in northern B.C., as well as Port Hardy, Courtenay and Qualicum on Vancouver Island, among the hardest-hit areas.
Parts of Vancouver Island saw up to 210 millimetres of rain since Thursday, the first major weather system of B.C.’s storm season, and the River Forecast Centre said flows in parts of northern and western Vancouver Island reached two- to five-year return levels on Friday.
A wind warning for parts of Metro Vancouver said gusts could reach up to 90 km/h and last until Sunday, while Environment Canada issued a coastal flooding statement warning that elevated ocean levels combined with strong winds and waves could push water above the highest astronomical tides.
B.C.’s River Forecast Centre said a second bout of rain would arrive later Saturday, stretching into Sunday, with the heaviest downpours expected on Vancouver Island and in the Sea to Sky and Howe Sound areas, along with the North Shore mountains.
The forecast also described a third storm expected to hit Monday that may bring a more prolonged period of rainfall through next week.
In the Village of Zeballos on northwest Vancouver Island, 22 properties remained under evacuation order after heavy rain and flooding on Friday led to a landslide risk; the Strathcona Regional District said a geotechnical engineer completed an initial assessment and it was awaiting a formal report.
Strathcona Regional District said Maquinna Avenue reopened to essential travel, but stopping was prohibited because of ongoing public safety risk.
BC Ferries cancelled multiple trips scheduled for Saturday night due to high winds and wave height in the Strait of Georgia, and warned more cancellations were possible on Sunday.
Separately, a North Vancouver woman, Brittany Craig, said firefighters saved her after she was swept down a fast-moving creek near Deep Cove while trying to fix a line bringing water from a nearby creek into her home in the Woodlands community.
Craig said she was pushed against a sheer bank and stranded on a log, then used a nearly dead cellphone to call 911; she waved her red hooded sweatshirt and screamed for help when firefighters arrived.
Assistant fire chief Dennis Cappellini said the call came around 12:47 p.m. about a water rescue and that when crews arrived the creek had turned into a fast-moving river; he said crews lowered a rescuer on a rope, attached Craig, and hauled her out onto a trail despite a tree falling near the scene.
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