Downed trees block highway to Tofino, cut off power to thousands

High seas and snow-capped mountains near Tofino, B.C.. (Getty Images)

Fallen trees cut off the only highway to and from the Vancouver Island communities of Tofino and Ucluelet, B.C., on Friday morning, while thousands of area residents woke up in the dark due to power outages.

B.C.'s Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure said early Friday morning that Highway 4 was closed between the Taylor River rest area and the Tofino-Ucluelet junction due to downed trees and hydro lines.

Work crews are on scene along the 51-kilometre closure to restore road access and power, the province said.

The outage left more than 4,600 BC Hydro customers in the dark since 12:53 a.m., according to the power provider.

By 2:30 p.m., there was no indication when the highway access or electricity would be restored.

The disruption comes as drivers across much of southern B.C. are being asked to avoid all non-essential travel due to the dangers of snow and freezing rain with the latest storm system to hit B.C.'s south coast.

Transportation Minister Rob Fleming said travel by road on Vancouver Island, the south coast, or to and from the Interior should be avoided “unless absolutely necessary.”