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Tens of thousands still without power after British Columbia ice storms

Mission and Abbotsford were the hardest hit communities after two ice storms slammed the region
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The storm alerts may be over, but tens of thousands of people in the Fraser Valley are still without electricity.

BC Hydro says Mission and Abbotsford were the hardest hit communities after two ice storms slammed the region on Thursday and Friday, bringing down tree branches and power lines.

In Mission, a few neighbourhoods had to evacuate their homes due to potential safety hazards.

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More than 100,000 people were initially affected by the outages beginning early Friday morning — 36,000 of whom had not had power restored by Saturday morning.

BC Hydro says crews — including some who were brought in from Vancouver Island and the Interior — are working to restore power, but “difficult and dangerous conditions” such as icy roads, poor visibility and falling trees have made the effort more challenging.

Officials are reminding people to keep their distance – about 10 metres away – and call 911 should they see a downed power line.

With files from The Canadian Press


@ashwadhwani
ashley.wadhwani@bpdigital.ca

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About the Author: Ashley Wadhwani-Smith

I began my journalistic journey at Black Press Media as a community reporter in my hometown of Maple Ridge, B.C.
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