VICTORIA -- More than 5,000 BC Hydro customers were temporarily without power Friday as snow fell across many regions of Vancouver Island.
The majority of the outages were located in the South Island in the Lake Cowichan area, where approximately 4,010 residents and businesses were without electricity. According to BC Hydro, the outages were caused by a transmission circuit failure in the area.
Meanwhile, nearly 1,000 people were without power on Pender Island after a tree fell down across power lines early Friday morning.
Further north on the island, power outages affected residents near Courtenay, Nanaimo and Port Alberni.
The majority of the outages were located just north of Courtenay and on Hornby Island, where an estimated 227 customers were without electricity.
BC Hydro says that the outage located north of Courtenay, which affected approximately 127 people, was caused by a fallen tree across power lines.
Meanwhile, two separate outages on Hornby Island, which affected approximately 100 people combined, were also believed to be caused by fallen trees.
The power outages came on the same day that Environment Canada warned of snowfall and high winds across Vancouver Island and the B.C. coast.
In higher elevations of Vancouver Island, up to 15 cm of snow were expected to fall. Meanwhile, high winds prompted BC Ferries to cancel a number of sailings Friday morning. BC Ferries resumed sailings at approximately 3 p.m.
For the latest updates on power outages, visit BC Hydro's website online here.
