Wild weather downs power
Two large trees came down Thursday night into the parking lot of the Chelsea Park Gardens Apts on Marshall Rd. Four cars were hit by branches but did not sustain major damage.
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Updated: November 06, 2009 10:56 AM
Approximately 5,000 Abbotsford homes found themselves without power Thursday evening, as the Fraser Valley was battered by strong winds and rain.
Tree branches began landing on power lines from the mid-afternoon, according to BC Hydro, as the gusts gathered speed. It had crews working overtime to restore power across the Lower Mainland.
At the local weather station located at Abbotsford International Airport, strong winds were registered from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.. They peaked at 67 km/h at 5 p.m.
While most of Abbotsford's most-populated areas were re-connected by 11 p.m., some of the more rural pockets had to wait until the early hours of Friday before power was restored.
Few areas escaped unscathed.
According to BC Hydro, in the north of Abbotsford across Matsqui Prairie, 1,905 homeowners east of Gladwin Rd, south of Lougheed Hwy and north of Whacom Road went without power from 5 p.m. to 8:20 p.m.
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Chelsea Park Gardens Building Manager Steve Stokes climbs through branches while surveying the damage after two large trees came down in the high winds on Thursday night. Four cars were hit by branches but did not sustain major damage.. John Van Putten Photo |
In the south of the city, 726 homes were out for an hour to the west of Sumas Way, east of Echo Road and south of Catalina Court from 3:15 p.m.
Meanwhile, further west towards Langley, between 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., 392 homes were out south of 98th Avenue, east of 212th Street, west of Ross Road, and north of 60th Avenue.
The weather was predicted to be considerably calmer this weekend. Winds were expected to peak at 15 km/h through Sunday, although up to 60 mm of rain could fall in that period.
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