Powerful winds knocked down trees and power lines, sent debris flying and left thousands of people in the dark across Vancouver Island Tuesday night.
Emergency crews were kept busy as gusts of up to 90 kilometres an hour swept B.C.’s South Coast, after Environment Canada issued a wind warning for eastern Vancouver Island and Greater Victoria earlier in the day.
In Victoria, a large tree came crashing down onto a truck on Fort at Moss streets.
Near the Cedar Hill Golf Course, a massive Garry oak tree came down right across the road while limbs and branches broke off, leaving a large mess.
Snapped power lines could be seen On Telegraph Bay Road, and traffic lights went out at some area intersections.
BC Hydro says at the peak of the storm, approximately 25,000 customers on Vancouver Island were left powerless due to downed power lines, while province-wide, 184,000 were impacted.
The company said crews would continue working throughout the day to repair damaged lines, transformers and power poles.
Anyone who spots a downed power line is asked to stay at least 10 metres back and call 911 immediately.
Only about 2,000 customers on the island remained without power as of Wednesday morning.
The winds eased overnight and Environment Canada has since rescinded its wind warning.
Unlucky parking for this truck owner last night in #yyj #wind #BCStorm @CTVNewsVI pic.twitter.com/OZ3g5fZq1P
— Louise Hartland (@CTVNewsLouise) May 24, 2017
