Outages could last into Friday, N.B. Power warns after province battered by winds
Wind clocked at 109 km/h at Fredericton airport during storm
More than 50,000 N.B. Power customers woke up in the dark on Thursday morning after a rain and wind storm blew through the province.
By about 4:30 p.m., more than 36,000 customers's power had been restored, leaving about 20,000 still without.
"While we are making every effort to restore power safely and efficiently, we encourage customers to be prepared for outages that may last into tomorrow," said Dominique Couture, a spokesperson for N.B. Power.
She said estimated restoration times were being updated regularly on their website.
"We understand the challenges of being without power, and our entire restoration team appreciates our customers' patience as we work to restore power to all impacted New Brunswickers," Couture said.
The outages were widespread, but the majority that remain are in the central and southern parts of the province.
High winds are the primary cause of the outages, Couture said.
In an email, she said that 550 fields resources were available to respond to the outages, including N.B. Power and contractor power line technicians, vegetation management personnel and support staff. Crews are in every district restoring power where it is safe.
Couture reminded residents to stay 33 feet (10 metres) away, or the length of a bus, from downed power lines, call 911, and report the downed line to N.B. Power.
The power outages and scattered debris caused school cancellations across the province as well.
Winds clocked at over 100 km/h
On Thursday, Environment Canada reported a peak wind speed of 109 km/h at the Fredericton Airport. Close behind, the Saint John Airport clocked a wind speed of 92 km/h.
And along with high winds, the December storm was accompanied by unusually warm weather and heavy rain that obliterated the towering snow banks in some areas.
St. Stephen, Fredericton, Miramichi and Kouchibouguac all recorded temperatures of 15 C or higher on Thursday, according to Environment Canada. Those temperatures have since plummeted but still sit above freezing.
Going into the weekend, Environment Canada forecasts that temperatures will slip back below freezing.