An ice storm with winds of up to 60 kilometers per hour left nearly 600,000 homes without power in Canada this Wednesday.
According to data from Hydro-Quebec, an electricity producer in the province of Canada’s east, the storm in Montreal left a quarter of the city without electricity, affecting 245,000 homes out of a total of 600,000 in Canada.
In a statement, Hydro-Quebec said it had mobilized available workers to restore power.
The freezing rain of the past few hours caused #malfunctions in different regions of Québec. Disruptions are mainly caused by the weight of the ice that breaks off branches and trees near the electricity grid and comes into contact with it.
The worst affected regions are the greater region of… pic.twitter.com/ZogdCIvnw4
– Hydro-Québec (@hydro_customer) April 5, 2023
Due to the accumulation of ice on trees and electrical structures, they break due to excess weight.
According to weather forecasts, between 20 and 30 millimeters of ice could fall this Wednesday in both Montreal and areas near Canada’s capital Ottawa.
Schools in Montreal closed due to the blackout.
In Ottawa, train service to the city was discontinued.
The authorities advised the population not to drive on the roads due to the bad weather conditions.
The storm also affected air traffic, with Montreal’s airport canceling dozens of domestic and international flights.
In January 1998, an ice storm left millions without power in the province of Quebec and parts of Canada’s Atlantic provinces, killing 34, with Canadian authorities sending 16,000 troops to aid in rescue and recovery efforts.
Source: DN
