Strong winds and heavy rain left about 330,000 B.C. Hydro customers on Vancouver Island and the mainland without power on Friday night.
As of 10:30 p.m. Friday, 200,000 people were without power, with Surrey, Victoria, Nanaimo, Qualicum and Parksville the hardest hit areas.
By Saturday morning, a total of 330,000 had been affected, though crews had restored power to about 185,000.
Of the 145,000 whose power had not been restored as of 6:30 a.m., 28,000 were on Vancouver and the Gulf Islands and 116,000 were on the Lower Mainland and Sunshine Coast.
B.C. Hydro said the wind knocked down trees and branches — many of them weakened by the summer’s drought — causing them to come into contact with electrical equipment.
The utility said all available B.C. Hydro crews and contractor crew are working to repair damaged power lines, power poles and other equipment and restore power.
“Crews will work throughout the night and into the day [Saturday] until all customers are restored,” said a statement from B.C. Hydro.
"Restoration work will continue through the day today, but due to the extensive damage, repairs could take some time, and continue into [Sunday], especially for customers in more remote areas."
If you see a downed power line, call 911 and stay at least 10 metres back. B.C. Hydro crews will work with first responders to make the area safe.
B.C. Hydro will provide updated estimates for power restoration as they become available at bchydro.com/outages.
Environment Canada issued wind warnings for east and west Vancouver Island, Greater Victoria and the Southern Gulf Islands on Friday night.
In Greater Victoria, it was forecasting westerly winds of 40 kilometres an hour gusting to 60 km/h, except near Juan de Fuca Strait, where there were winds of up to 70 km/h with gusts of 90 km/h. Similar warnings were in place for east Vancouver Island and the Southern Gulf Islands.
On west Vancouver Island, strong northwesterly winds of 80 km/h gusting to 100 km/h were expected.
By Saturday morning, the winds had eased and the alerts had been lifted.
B.C. Ferries cancelled several sailings Friday due to what it called "adverse weather conditions," including trips between Nanaimo and Galiano Island, Vesuvius Bay and Crofton, and Powell River and Texada.
