A freezing rain storm with winds of up to 60 kilometers per hour left this Wednesday without electricity to about 600,000 homes in Canada.
According to data from Hydro-Quebec, the hydroelectric company of the province of Quebec, in eastern Canada, the storm left without electricity the aforementioned number of homes, of which 245,000 are in Montreal, representing a quarter of the city.
Hydro-Quebec said in a statement that it has mobilized all available employees to restore power.
The accumulation of ice on trees and electrical structures causes them to break due to the excess weight.
According to weather forecasts, both Montreal and areas near the Canadian capital, Ottawa, may have rainfall of between 20 and 30 millimeters of ice this Wednesday.
The cuts of electricity caused the closure of numerous schools in Montreal.
In Ottawa, the light rail service in the city was also halted.
The provincial authorities have advised that the population refrain from driving on the roads due to bad weather conditions.
The storm has also affected air transport and the Montreal airport has had to cancel dozens of national and international flights.
In January 1998, a massive ice storm left millions of people without power in Quebec and parts of Canada’s Atlantic provinces. It caused 34 deaths, brought down much of Quebec’s pylons and forced Canadian authorities to deploy 16,000 troops to assist with rescue and recovery efforts.
#Ice #storm #knocks #power #homes #Canada
Source Link
