Image: File image of a windsock / File / Pattison Media

By Fraser Valley Today Staff

Overnight storm

Windstorm results in series of power outages across Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland

Aug 18, 2024 | 5:43 AM

CHILLIWACK — Chilliwack, Abbotsford, and other parts of the Fraser Valley were not spared from the impact of an overnight windstorm that swept into B.C.’s Lower Mainland late Saturday (Aug. 18) night.

As of 5 a.m. Sunday, the largest outage in Chilliwack occurred in a neighborhood just south of South Sumas Road and east of Tyson Road. A total of 121 homes and businesses were left without power shortly after 1:15 a.m. when a piece of BC Hydro equipment failed.

Another five BC Hydro customers lost power along the southeast edge of Cultus Lake just before 1 a.m. Sunday.

Approximately 45 homes and businesses in Abbotsford were also affected by outages triggered by the storm. BC Hydro’s outage website reported that trees came down on power lines east of Beharrell Road and south of Morrison Road, cutting power to 32 BC Hydro customers. That outage occurred shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday.

Three other pockets of five or fewer homes or businesses in Abbotsford also suffered outages between 11:30 p.m. Saturday and early Sunday morning.

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The largest outage in the Lower Mainland occurred in Burnaby, where over 4,800 locations lost power at 2:29 a.m.

Overall, as of 5:30 a.m. Sunday, BC Hydro’s outage website reported 9,588 outages across the Lower Mainland and the Sunshine Coast, putting Hydro repair crews to the test.