Thousands remain without natural gas in Okanagan two days after service disruption
Posted April 16, 2026 2:22 pm.
Last Updated April 19, 2026 12:42 pm.
As of Sunday at noon, technicians had restored natural gas service to around 5,500 of the approximately 6,200 customers who lost service in the Okanagan Thursday, FortisBC says.
“Crews were back this morning at 7 a.m. to continue relights for approximately 1,000 customers,” Lauren Beckett, corporate communications advisor, told 1130 NewsRadio Sunday.
Crews continue to work to finish the last 1,000 customers who are still without service.
According to Emergency Info BC, the disruption initially covered parts of Lake Country, Kelowna, and the Okanagan Indian Band (Duck Lake).
Fortis says restoring service involves several steps, initially involving turning gas off at the meters, corporate communications advisor Lauren Beckett said Thursday.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO 1130 NEWSRADIO VANCOUVER LIVE!“That’s part of the restoration process. Once all the gas meters are off, then they will be able to repressurize the gas line. That can take about two to three hours. And then after that, they will start re-lights for customers as well. So they’ll return back to each home and they’ll re-light everyone’s appliances.”
“If [residents are not home when crews come by], a door tag will be left with instructions on how to request a return visit. For safety reasons, customers should not turn on their gas meter or relight appliances. A technician will come to your home and safely complete this work.”
Beckett said Thursday the cause of the disruption was unclear.
“Early information indicates that the outage originated within our system,” she said.
It isn’t clear when all customers will have their service restored.
