New Delhi: A fast and violent storm rolled on Saturday through Southern Ontario and Quebec – killing at least nine people and leaving around half of a million without power. A storm lasted for more than two hours on Saturday afternoon and packed the power of a tornado, leaving a trail of destruction in parts of Ontario and Quebec. Wind gusts as strong as 132 kmph (82mph) felled trees, uprooted electric poles and toppled many metal transmission towers.
According to the officials, Electricity companies were scrambling on Sunday to restore transmission lines. Most of the deaths from the storms occurred when people were hit by falling trees.
Hydro providers say they have hundreds of crews out working to restore services but are warning that it could take days for some to get power back. “Between trees, branches, broken poles, and wires down, it’s really a very very messy cleanup,” said Hydro One spokeswoman Tiziana Baccega Rosa.
She said while it’s not unusual to have such high numbers of people temporarily without power, which for Hydro One stood at about 260,000 Sunday afternoon, the extent of the damage, including the toppling of metal transmission towers in the Ottawa area, is notable.
“That is unique, and it tells you sort of the severity of the storm,” she said.
Hydro Ottawa said the damage, including more than 200 power poles down across the city, is much more widespread than a 2018 tornado that left half the city without power, meaning it will take longer and be more difficult to fix. As of Sunday afternoon, there were still close to 175,000 customers without power.
The prime minister, Justin Trudeau, said the federal government was ready to help those in need. “We are thinking of everyone affected and thanking the crews – who are working to restore power,” Trudeau tweeted on Sunday.
The sky was a weird color, and the winds started howling as the rain pounded on the ground.
(Smit)