BC Hydro keeping up with demand despite cold, utility says

Staying warm in the freezing temperatures brought on by an arctic outflow on the west coast has been a challenge for many, but BC Hydro says it’s so far being able to keep up with demand.

While there have been some outages related to the blast of winter weather that came Thursday, BC Hydro’s Kevin Aquino says it’s been nowhere near the nearly 100,000 customers who lost power earlier this week.

Power usage is up, but he says the provider is maintaining the system.

“We saw electricity usage increase as customers were raising the temperatures on their thermostats. We did see about 10,300 megawatts on the system, and while that is high, it is not record breaking,” he explained Friday.

However, he says that record — of nearly 11,000 megawatts set in December 2022 — could break Friday night, as frigid temperatures are set to persist throughout the weekend.

“With the dropping temperatures throughout the next few days, we are likely to see near-record or record-breaking numbers later today, due to the fact that this Friday will be the coldest day out of the next few days,” Aquino said.

BC Hydro is reminding people to keep an emergency kit handy and to make sure they have a plan in the event of an outage.

People are also reminded to stay away from any and all downed or damaged power lines. If you do come across one, you’re told to stay back at least 10 metres — about the length of a bus — and to call 911 to report it.

“When a power line touches the ground, the electricity will flow through the ground over a wide area – think of it like ripples in a pool of water,” the utility provider explains.

“The voltage in the ground is very high at the point of electrical contact but as you move farther away, the voltage will drop off. At around 10 metres, the voltage drops to zero. This is why we recommend staying at least this length away. It’s also important to keep away from any object that is in contact with a power line.”