Skip to content

Planned power outage for Trail early Friday

FortisBC advises customers to check outages map online
19761983_web1_191212-TDT-M-plug
Power to 800 FortisBC customers in Trail will be off early Friday. (Photo by Clint Patterson on Unsplash)

FortisBC is giving a heads up to certain Trail residents and businesses that their power will be out for 15 minutes early Friday morning.

“It’s mostly downtown, which is why they’ve aimed for outside of business hours,” spokesperson Nicole Brown told the Trail Times.

Besides centrally-located properties, residents on Riverside Avenue and a handful of West Trail streets, will also be without power from 6 a.m. to 6:15 a.m.

Streets that will be affected are as follows: Victoria, Pine, Topping, Short, Oak, Tamarac, Cedar, Spokane, Green, Wilmes, Bay, Daniel, Farwell, Birch, Helena, Riverside, Warren, Lookout, Eldorado, Ash, Aspen and Portland.

“We have to turn power off for about 15 minutes in Trail early Friday morning to complete repairs on a power pole,” Brown advised.

“It will affect about 800 customers on Friday, Dec. 13, from 6 a.m. to 6:15,” she said.

“The exact areas should appear on our outage map tomorrow morning.”

For more information, customers can visit fortisbc.com/outages or call 1-866-436-7847.

Tips from FortisBC during a power outage:

• Switch off appliances, electronics and lights to prevent a power surge when service is restored. However, leaving one light on inside and one outside will help both you and us know when the power is back on.

• Don’t touch your circuit breaker or fuse panel with wet hands or while standing on a damp floor.

• If you decide to use your barbecue or propane camp stove to cook, use them outdoors only. Using them in an enclosed area could be a fire hazard and cause carbon monoxide to build up.

• A gas cooktop can be used during a power outage to prepare food, but do not use it as a heating source.

• Use wind-up or battery-powered flashlights. If you use candles, do not leave them unattended, especially around young children and pets.

• Keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to keep food cold. In general, a half-full freezer will keep food frozen for up to 24 hours and a full freezer will keep food frozen for up to 48 hours.

• Although a natural gas furnace will not operate during an outage, a natural gas fireplace can provide cozy warmth until the power is back on.

After the power comes back on

• Wait 10 to 15 minutes after the power has been fully restored before slowly turning everything back on. This will give the entire electrical system a chance to stabilize.

This is particularly important in the winter.



newsroom@trailtimes.ca

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter



Sheri Regnier

About the Author: Sheri Regnier

Read more