Crews have been laboring throughout Saturday to repair power outages in communities across eastern Ontario and western Quebec caused by strong winds the previous night. The severe winds on Friday led to trees and branches falling, disrupting power for tens of thousands of customers. As the winds subsided, repair efforts promptly commenced in eastern Ontario, as stated by Hydro One spokesperson Kaitlyn Forde.
Forde mentioned that restoration in more remote areas might take longer. Outages are still affecting Kingston, Tweed, and Perth, with each outage having its own estimated restoration time that could change once crews assess the damage on-site during repairs. Forde emphasized the importance of maintaining a safe distance from downed power lines and promptly reporting them to the utility company.
Hydro One is committed to restoring power to all customers, with crews working tirelessly to achieve this goal. In western Quebec, thousands woke up without power on Saturday, with approximately 14,000 customers still affected by outages in the afternoon. In the Outaouais region, about 90 teams have been mobilized, including teams from other parts of the province like Saguenay and the lower St. Lawrence, offering assistance and support in restoring power.
Annie Beaudoin, a spokesperson for Hydro-Québec, mentioned that most customers in the region should have their power restored soon. However, some areas may experience continued outages until Sunday.