Tumbler Ridge Transmission Structure Update July 15
BC Hydro advises that the wooden transmission structure servicing Tumbler Ridge continues to be impacted by unstable soil and excessive water. Our primary concern is for the safety of our crews and customers as we implement a plan that ensures power reliability, given poor road access and site instability.
There are no power interruptions affecting Tumbler Ridge.
BC Hydro crews have been on site for several days with priority work as follows:
- Construction of two new wood pole structures on both sides of High Hat Creek on higher, more solid ground to bypass the current structure and create a long-term solution. More crews and additional equipment is enroute, including specialty manufactured poles are being trucked from Vancouver today; and
- Supplemental actions to stabilize the impacted structure in order to avert an outage while work on the long-term solution is underway.
If the transmission structure should fall:
Should the transmission structure fall, a power outage will occur in Tumbler Ridge. The length of such an outage would depend on progress on the long-term solution and whether other temporary solutions are feasible given the challenging ground conditions.
BC Hydro is also working with the community and the Provincial Emergency Program to determine what is required in the event of an extended outage, including standby generators as supplemental power to Tumbler Ridge's existing backup units for their critical infrastructure.
We will continue to provide information and as much advance notice as possible of potential power interruptions. Information will also be posted through the offices and website of the District of Tumbler Ridge.
Additional Information:
BC Hydro field operations observed deteriorating conditions yesterday afternoon around a wood pole structure that is part of the 230 kilovolt transmission line to Tumbler Ridge. Monitoring of the site has been ongoing since the beginning of this week. This area has been subject to significant rainfall and high water levels at High Hat Creek, leading to soil saturation on a hillside where the transmission structure is located. Earlier this week, BC Hydro completed a geotechnical assessment and plans were underway to begin construction of two new wood pole structures on both sides of High Hat Creek on higher, more solid ground.