Power has been restored after a lightning strike took down power from Prince Rupert to Vanderhoof.
Seemingly all towns along that section of Highway 16 were affected. Stewart, the Nass Valley, areas near Fort St. James, and parts of Haida Gwaii also lost power, according to BC Hydro's outage map. Approximately 45,000 BC Hydro customers were affected, according to a BC Hydro spokesperson.
Power was brought back online in stages, community by community, east to west, the spokesperson said.
"Power has been restored to about 96% of customers, and had to be restored in stages to maintain voltage stability and protect the grid from further disruptions," the spokesperson said in an email. "We thank customers for their patience."
The lighting strike was near BC Hydro's transmission line that conducts electricity along the highway corridor, which lead to the large-scale outage.
