On Thursday, 12th of June at 4:12pm lightning strikes caused the transmission lines between Prince George and Terrace, which then split on to Kitimat, Prince Rupert and north to Bob Quinn to fault out of service resulting in power outages to all communities between Vanderhoof and the west coast.
The Northern community relations coordinator at B.C. Hydro David Mosure said
‘’Crews were immediately dispatched and began the repair and restore process. With customer numbers this large, once repairs are complete, we have to bring communities back online in stages to avoid overloading the system. In this instance all customers were restored by 6:00p.m.’’
The Lack of back-up transmission lines in Northwest B.C. makes it vulnerable to large scale power outages.
Premier David Eby announced in 2024 plans to build new transmission lines between Terrace and Prince George to provide more reliable power to industrial customers in the region – however there has not been any comment about yesterdays disruptions yet.
Also, there have been no reported outages from phone or internet providers in the region.
Residents are reminded to report any downed lines hazards and to stay indoors during active storms.