Reconnected: BC Hydro has restored power to nearly all customers impacted by Bush Creek East wildfire
Sept. 14, 2023 update
VANCOUVER: Yesterday, BC Hydro crews restrung the last span of wire in what has been an extensive rebuild of the electrical infrastructure damaged by the Bush Creek East wildfire. Power has now been restored to more than 99.5 per cent of the customers impacted.
Over the past several weeks, more than 150 workers – both local crews and others from across the province – have worked to restore power to the 4,000 customers that lost power as a result of the wildfire. The Bush Creek East wildfire caused significant damage to the electrical infrastructure in the area – about 22 kilometres of power lines, 430 poles and 52 pieces of other equipment needed to be replaced.
Crews have replaced 427 poles and yesterday restrung the last span of wire on Holding Road on the way to Adams Lake. In addition to replacing the damaged infrastructure, they also participated alongside first responders and BC Wildfire Services in an extensive clean up effort to remove debris and vegetation from the impacted areas.
Protecting wildlife is also a priority for BC Hydro, and part of the rebuild effort also included replacing osprey platforms – taller power poles with a dedicated nesting platform – not attached to the electricity infrastructure. This is used to keep the birds safe and to prevent power outages and equipment damage-related to nesting.
BC Hydro is offering support to customers impacted by the wildfires. Residential and commercial customers who were affected by an evacuation order are eligible to receive a credit for the electricity consumed for the duration of the time they’re out of their home, if the order was for five days or longer.
BC Hydro would like to extend a huge thank you to the community who has been so patient and supportive as crews have replaced the infrastructure to restore power as well as local firefighters, first responders, BC Wildfire Services, First Nations and other stakeholders.
While the vast majority of work is complete, there is still a small amount of work to go. The latest information on restoration efforts is available at bchydro.com/outages.
Sept. 7, 2023 update
VANCOUVER: BC Hydro crews have replaced more than 400 poles damaged by the Bush Creek East wildfire and power has been restored to 95 per cent of the customers impacted.
The Bush Creek East wildfire caused significant damage to the electrical infrastructure in the area – about 22 kilometres of power lines, 430 poles and 52 pieces of other equipment needed to be replaced. About 150 workers have been working hard to rebuild the infrastructure destroyed by the wildfire.
BC Hydro crews will continue rebuild work over the weekend and hope to have power restored to all remaining customers by early next week.
The safety of the public, crews and first responders has been and will continue to be BC Hydro’s top priority as it works to repair the extensive damage caused by the wildfire. BC Hydro appreciates customers’ patience and is committed to keeping its customers up-to-date on restoration efforts. The latest information will be available at bchydro.com/outages.
Sept. 1, 2023 update
VANCOUVER: BC Hydro crews have made significant progress over the past few days, replacing more than 130 power poles damaged by the Bush Creek East wildfire.
Significant resources have been mobilized to the region. There are more than 150 workers on the ground working to replace damaged equipment in an effort to restore customers in Shuswap area. Steady progress will continue over the weekend.
While crews are making good progress, they are dealing with challenging terrain that makes restoration more complicated. In some areas, pole replacement requires drilling and hammering into rock, which can slow work down.
Despite these challenges, BC Hydro expects to see power restored to many impacted customers over the next week. Power will be restored in segments as the rebuild work is complete.
The Bush Creek East wildfire caused significant damage to the electrical infrastructure in the area – about 27 kilometres of power lines, 430 poles and 66 pieces of other equipment needed to be replaced.
The safety of the public, crews and first responders has been and will continue to be BC Hydro’s top priority as it works to repair the extensive damage caused by the wildfire. BC Hydro appreciates customers’ patience and is committed to keeping its customers up-to-date on restoration efforts. The latest information will be available at bchydro.com/outages.
Aug. 29, 2023 update
VANCOUVER: BC Hydro has significantly increased the number of workers on the ground over the past couple of days, and work to rebuild the damaged infrastructure is well underway.
The Bush Creek East wildfire caused significant damage to the electrical infrastructure in the area – about 27 kilometres of power lines, 430 poles and 66 pieces of other equipment will need to be replaced. A complete damage assessment is still underway and these numbers are expected to increase.
There are more than 120 workers in the region supporting restoration efforts, and BC Hydro will continue to send more resources as needed. With the additional support on the ground, work is expected to ramp up significantly in the coming days.
To date, BC Hydro has replaced 50 power poles, and has dug about 130 holes in preparation for placing additional poles. About 10 spans of wire have already been restrung.
Crews have restored power to nearly 1,000 customers in the area where access has been granted. However, at this time, it is too early to say when power will be restored to the remaining 3,000 impacted customers.
BC Hydro will be prioritizing restoring power to critical infrastructure like water and wastewater plants, medical facilities and communications sites. Crews will also be looking for ways to get the largest number of customers restored as safely and quickly as possible.
The safety of the public, crews and first responders has been and will continue to be BC Hydro’s top priority as it works to repair the extensive damage caused by the wildfire. BC Hydro appreciates customers’ patience as it works to restore power and is committed to keeping its customers up-to-date on restoration efforts. The latest information will be available at bchydro.com/outages.
Large mobilization of crews and material to aid power restoration in Shuswap
Aug. 26, 2023
VANCOUVER: BC Hydro has been actively working to mobilize dozens of crews and the material and equipment needed to aid in the extensive restoration work underway as a result of the damage from the Bush Creek East wildfire.
Since the fire started, BC Hydro has been working closely with the BC Wildfire Service, first responders and local governments. Over the past week, it has mobilized dozens of crews – power line technicians and vegetation crews – to support with removing damaged equipment and debris, and clearing vegetation.
While damage assessments are ongoing as access to impacted areas is granted, the damage recorded to-date is extensive. About 22 kilometres of power lines, 317 poles and 52 pieces of other equipment will need to be replaced.
Today, there are 45 workers in the area supporting the restoration work, and by Monday, an additional 75 workers will arrive for a total of 120 workers. BC Hydro will continue to evaluate the number of people needed to support the rebuild and will bring in additional resources as needed.
To date, crews have restored power to nearly 1,000 customers in the area where access has been granted. However, at this time, it is too early to say when power will be restored to the remaining 3,000 impacted customers.
Going forward, BC Hydro will be prioritizing restoring power to critical infrastructure like water and wastewater plants, medical facilities and communications sites. Crews will also be looking for ways to get the largest number of customers restored as safely and quickly as possible.
BC Hydro understands this is an extremely difficult time for the community, and it is working hard to restore power to impacted customers, but it will take time. BC Hydro is assigning all available BC Hydro crews and contractor crews to this work, including bringing in crews from other areas of the province that have not been impacted by recent wildfire activity, as well as crews from Fortis.
The safety of the public, crews and first responders has been and will continue to be BC Hydro’s top priority as it works to repair the extensive damage caused by the wildfire. BC Hydro appreciates customers’ patience as it works to restore power and is committed to keeping its customers up-to-date on restoration efforts. The latest information will be available at bchydro.com/outages.
BC Hydro is also offering support to customers impacted by the wildfires. Residential and commercial customers who are affected by an evacuation order are eligible to receive a credit for the electricity consumed for the duration of the time they’re out of their home, if the order is for five days or longer. More information about support to customers impacted by the wildfires can be found on the BC Hydro website.
Contact:
BC Hydro Media Relations
e. media@bchydro.com
p. 604 928 6468