Toronto Hydro Restored Power to 95% of Customers

TORONTO – Toronto continues moving forward, although likely slower toward full restoration of power than most customers would like. Toronto Hydro-Electric System Limited (Toronto Hydro) is working twenty-four hours a day however there are still 16,000 customers who are without hydro since the Ice Storm 2013 hit the city.

That represents approximately five per cent of Toronto Hydro customers remaining without power.

Crews are focusing on localized neighbourhoods, apartment buildings, condominiums and individual homes that are still without service. “While significant progress has been made, customers who are still without power should be prepared for restoration to continue over the next few days. This type of restoration effort is always most labour intensive with a great deal of forestry work and clean-up required.  Toronto Hydro, along with the support of neighbouring utilities will continue to work until all power is restored,” stated the utility company in a statement.

Toronto Hydro has asked that the public let them get on with the work, and not to engage crews in discussion.

“Public and worker safety is Toronto Hydro’s first priority and we urge the public to exercise extreme caution in power restoration locations.  Please keep a safe distance from crews working in the area (at least 15 feet) as tree limbs and ice continue to fall as a result of the warmer temperatures”, caution Toronto Hydro officials.

Customers are reminded that if Toronto Hydro is reporting that their neighbourhood has been restored when their home is still without power they should do the following:

• Check to see if your neighbours have power. If they don’t, it is likely that more work is to be done on your street.
• If your home is the only house without electricity, check your electrical panel inside the home to see if the breakers are in the “on” position.
• Check outside to see if the electrical equipment on your home is damaged or if the service wire is down.  If the wire is down, please stay back and contact a licensed ECRA/ESA electrical contractor. A list is available on Toronto Hydro’s website at torontohydro.com/poweroutage
• If you have completed the above and your power is still out, please report your outage to 416-542-8000.

The City of Toronto is still operating Reception centres, where those in need can access food, water, warmth and rest. For more information, please visit Toronto.ca

If you spot a downed wire, please stay back (at least 10 feet) and report it to Toronto Hydro’s operations centre at 416-542-8000. For more information about household items to have on hand during a lengthy outage, please visit torontohydro.com/poweroutage

Hydro One at 98 Per Cent Restored Power

Hydro One reports that 98% of its customers affected by the ice storm have had their power restored. Crews are still working restoring individual outages and full power back up and running to all customers affected by the ice storm is expected to be later tonight and early tomorrow morning.

Currently, the most impacted areas are listed below:

“The final mile is the slowest and hardest part of any restoration job for our customers and for our employees,” said Carm Marcello, President and CEO of Hydro One Inc. “Crews are going house-to-house right now, in many cases doing repair jobs that only restore a single customer. They will not stop until all power is restored.”

Hydro One currently has more than 1,000 workers restoring power, more than one employee for every five customers without power.

“Our customers have shown tremendous patience and resilience. I want to thank them, as well as all utility workers from across Ontario who have worked through the holiday season to return life to normal for the people without power,” Marcello added. “It’s been an enormous challenge.”