Key takeaways:
- Fixing power remains a ‘colossal’ challenge, Hydro-Québec says.
- Many are still without electricity in the Laurentian’s town.
It’s been a week since a decisive storm struck Sainte-Adèle, Que., but hundreds in the town are still without electricity as Hydro-Québec units work around the clock to fix power in the Laurentians.
Previous Saturday’s storm packed winds between 83 and 144 km/h, uprooting trees, sipping hydro poles, and leaving hundreds of thousands of Quebecers in the dark.
At its height, around 550,000 across the region were without power.
“After two days, only one-third of the population had their electricity back,” said Saint-Adèle Mayor Michèle Lalonde.
Lalonde had initially expected the power would be back by Friday but said 15 percent of those in the town are still without power.
“I know there are approximately 60 homes on my street that haven’t had power since Saturday, and we can’t do anything regarding it,” said Jean-Louis Douay, who stays in the town.
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Approximately 8,900 clients in the region have been without electricity since last weekend, most of them in the Laurentians, Lanaudière, and Outaouais provinces, according to Hydro-Québec. It expects to have much of the power in the areas repaired by the end of the week.
It’s detailed work since many of the personal outages touch ten or fewer clients, the power utility said.
A ‘colossal’ challenge
“The challenge stays colossal because of the significant harm caused by the severe thunderstorms that moved at 100 kilometers per hour over 300 kilometers,” Hydro-Québec said Saturday.
Over 13,300 clients across the entire region were still without power as of Saturday afternoon, the vast bulk in the Laurentians.
Almost 2,000 workers are out today working to repair the service, Hydro-Québec said.
Source – cbc.ca
