As temperatures fell below -30C, a power outage resulted in a loss of heat for hundreds of residents in the County of Barrhead and Lac Ste. Anne County for about four hours on Feb. 2.
Charles Grabler, who is the president of the Meadowview Community Association, said he was just about to go to bed around 11:15 p.m. when the power went out on his farm.
He estimated that the power didn’t come on again until around 3:30 a.m., about four hours later.
However, Grabler said that his daughter who lives just east of his farm reports that their power didn’t come on until 7:30 a.m.
“It’s terrible,” he said, noting that four hours without power at -30C temperatures was bad enough.
Alana Antonelli, media relations manager for FortisAlberta, said a downed wire resulted in approximately 459 customers in both municipalities losing power.
Antonelli said crews went to work on repairing the damage and power was restored to at least some customers by 4 a.m.
Luckily, the power outage didn’t cause any damage to his plumbing.
He had also checked the old Meadowview School building, which now functions as a community hall, and confirmed that the water was running and the furnace turned on when the power did.
To his knowledge, Grabler didn’t know of anyone hurt by the outage, although he imagines that some water bowls for cattle got frozen.
Antonelli said safety and reliability are always of the upmost importance to a utility like Fortis.
That said, “things can happen,” she said, which is why they encourage customers to have an emergency kit and other preparations.
An emergency kit should be stocked with sufficient supplies to last 72 hours.
According to a checklist on Fortis’ website, a proper kit should have bottled water, three days’ supply of non-perishable food, a first aid kit, extra medication, a lantern and flashlight, a battery-operated radio and batteries, extra warm clothing and blankets, candles and extra wood for a fireplace.
Fortis’ website also gives further tips on surviving during an outage such as heading to your basement, where heat will be drawn from the subsoil as the rest of the house cools.
Further info on how to report power outages can be found online by visiting www.fortisalberta.com.
