‘All hands on deck’: Crews working to restore power to thousands across Ontario after weekend ice storms

Hydro crews are responding to outages across central and eastern Ontario.

Crews are working as quickly as possible to restore power to thousands of people in Ontario impacted by this weekend’s ice storms, but it could take several days, says Hydro One.

Late Sunday afternoon, the province’s largest electricity transmission and distribution service provider said power is now back for more than 257,000 of its customers.

“We appreciate your patience as crews are out in full force in tough conditions to restore power to our customers,” it said in a post on X.

“A second round of freezing rain is expected and may continue to impact power lines, road conditions & increase risk of flooding. Keep safe; stay 10 metres back from fallen lines. Report them to 911 and 1-800-434-1235.”

Hydro One spokesperson Tiziana Baccega Rosa said parts of the province saw another ice storm today. That, coupled with the previous one, has resulted in more ice build up.

“So we continue to see tree limbs, trees come down ... That’s what our crews are facing as they’re trying to access areas, some which just the roads need to be cleaned up before they can even access to reach customers,” Rosa said.

“And that’s not it, there’s more coming. There is more freezing rain anticipated for different parts of central and eastern Ontario later this evening and into tomorrow. So we will continue to see more outages occur.”

Rosa added that an “all-hands-on-deck” approach is being taken to repair snapped hydro lines, many of which were damaged by falling tree limbs.

She said people should not trim trees or tree limbs close to power lines, noting that they need to be de-energized in in order to be repaired.

“We don’t want anyone getting hurt as we restore power,” said Rosa, adding this applies to not only customer and the public, but also crews.

“We’re seeing downed lines everywherea and you need to stay at least 10 meters. That’s three school bus lengths away. You cannot tell if power is still flowing through that line, and we don’t want anyone getting hurt.”

In a previous post on X, Hydro One underlind that safety is its “top priority.”

“We urge customers to stay away from downed power lines, trees and any damaged electrical equipment,” the provider said.

Rosa went on to say that impacted customers are being advised to do “make the decisions that’s best for you and your family” during these difficult conditions.

“So if it is better for you to leave home and it’s safe to do so and stay with relatives, that is one option. The other option is to safely shelter in place,” she said.

“So if you are able to repair your emergency preparedness kit and you can shelter that is an option, it’s really important.”

Alectra Utilities, which serves about a million homes and businesses and about three million people in the Golden Horseshoe Area, said its crews would also be working overnight to restore electricity lost due to the ice storm.

Approximately 18,000 of its customers in Barrie, Penetanguishene, and Richmond Hill are still in the dark at this time.

This is down from the more than 44,000 who were without power at the height of the storm early Sunday morning, the company said in a written statement.

“Alectra crews are working 24/7 in very challenging and hazardous conditions, prioritizing public safety and critical infrastructure while restoring service as efficiently as possible,” the utility said, adding that additional forestry crews have also been brought in to clear downed tree limbs from around the damaged powerlines in advance of the emergency crews that are repairing the grid.

“Unfortunately, due to the severity of the damage from ice accretion across Alectra’s service territory, and significant tree damage in downtown Barrie that is complicating restoration, some customers will be without power overnight and into Monday morning.”

The power may also be restored for some and not other, depending on whether or not their home’s mast was damaged during the storm, said Alectra Utilities, which urged people to avoid opening your refrigerator or freezer doors unless necessary to prevent cold air from escaping.

“We know this is an extremely difficult time for those still without power, especially given the weather. We want to express our sincere appreciation to our customers for their patience, resilience and understanding as we work to restore service safely.”

How bad was it?

Upwards of 400,000 customers lost power across Ontario due to this weekend’s ice storms.

A map from Hydro One showed impacted customers concentrated in cottage country, from Tobermory and Parry Sound to Peterborough.

In Orillia, at the heart of Ontario’s cottage country, Environment Canada warned that ice could accumulate up to 25 millimetres. It did resulting in some spectacular sights, but also created some precarious driving and living conditions.

As a result, the municipality has declared a state of emergency and has set up a relief centre at the Orillia Recreation Centre to accommodate overnight guests.

The Township of Oro-Medonte, which is on the northwestern shores of Lake Simcoe in Simcoe County, has also declared a state of emergency due to the impacts of the storm.

The extreme weather event has also led Peterborough to put up a list of reception centres, including one for overnight guests, on its website.

Barrie has also been hit hard, however the city has not declared a state of emergency at this point.

In Durham Region, officials warned residents to be aware of fallen trees in addition to traffic light not working in several areas.

“Many traffic lights are not working – remember to treat them as a four-way stop,” Durham police wrote in a post to social media.

“Crews are working as fast as they can to clean up – if you can stay home today, please do.”

Premier Doug Ford is also assuring Ontarians that the province is “actively working with communities affected by the ice storm that occurred over the weekend to keep people safe and restore power as quickly as possible.”

Toronto warming centres remain open

Despite the freezing warning now lifted, The City of Toronto has confirmed they will keep five warming centres open today.

What’s next? Warming temperatures and more rain

And while Toronto is no longer under a freezing rain warning, officials at Environment Canada said freezing rain will now transition to periods of “mixed drizzle” throughout this Sunday afternoon.

The national weather agency aded that there’s a risk of thunderstorms late Sunday evening and after midnight.

Winds will shift from east at 20 km/h to southwest at 30 km/h, gusting up to 50 km/h. The overnight low will remain at 5 C.

Monday’s forecast?

On Monday, cloudy skies and a 60 per cent chance of morning showers are expected, with stronger winds shifting northwest at 30 km/h, gusting to 50 km/h by noon.

Temperatures will reach its peak at 15 C before dipping to 3 C in the afternoon.