Hundreds of Thousands Still Without Power in Ontario, With Damaging Winds in Forecast

A Hydro worker works on a power line following an ice storm in Montreal on April 7, 2023. The Canadian Press/Graham Hughes

Ontario was struck by a long and damaging ice storm over the weekend causing widespread damage to trees and power lines across several regions, leaving hundreds of thousands of households without power.

Thousands of homes and businesses remained in the dark March 31 across central and eastern Ontario with the outages stretching as far north as Subury, according to the Hydro One outage map.

The cleanup efforts may be further hindered by strong winds expected throughout the day. Environment Canada posted several weather advisories in areas across the province, warning of high winds that could cause additional damage.

Northwest wind gusts of up to 50 kilometres per hour are expected to begin late this morning and last into the evening hours, the weather agency said.

“The ice storm left anywhere from 10 to 25 mm of ice on trees and hydro lines,” Environment Canada said in its advisory. “Although temperatures have risen above freezing and the ice may have melted in some areas, strong wind gusts may result in further impacts.”

Ongoing wintry impacts will continue across northeastern Ontario with Greater Sudbury, North Bay, French River, and the surrounding areas under another freezing rain watch.

Ice accretion of between 10 and 20 millimetres is expected with the freezing rain changing to ice pellets and then to snow later in the morning in Sudbury and French River while North Bay is expected to receive rain as temperatures rise.

Further north in Timmins, Kirkland Lake, and Temagami, snow, ice pellets and freezing rain are all in the forecast. Environment Canada is warning motorists to stay off the roads if possible.

Storm Impact

Hydro One said it has restored power to more than 358,000 customers since the start of the storm, but said it will take “several days” to restore power to the remaining households and businesses.

“It’s all hands on deck as crews continue to work alongside our contractors to restore power to customers,” Hydro One said in a morning post on March 31.

“Hydro One prioritizes restoration in a way that brings power back to the greatest number of customers in the shortest period of time,” the utility provider said. “Crews need to repair and rebuild main lines along with other key pieces of electricity infrastructure before repairs can be made to power lines that serve smaller numbers of customers.”

States of emergency have been declared in several cities and regions in response to the destruction from ice build-up on trees and hydro lines and the resulting power failures.

Orillia was one of the cities to declare a state of emergency on March 30, with several roads in the area closed due to downed power lines and trees. A March 30 press release said trees are continuing to fall under the weight of the ice accumulation “creating significant hazards.”

Alternate head of council Tim Lauer urged residents to stay home for their own safety.

“Please take this seriously,” he said in the statement. “The situation is evolving, and staying off the roads allows our crews and emergency services to focus on keeping the community safe.”

Peterborough also declared a state of emergency on March 30 to “support recovery efforts related to the ice storm.”

“Ice accumulation is knocking down power lines, trees and tree limbs, causing power outages and unsafe conditions,” the city said in its advisory, noting that many public buildings would be closed March 31 due to continued outages. “Please avoid unnecessary travel, if possible.”

The District of Muskoka and the Township of Oro-Medonte also declared states of emergency in their regions.

Several towns and cities were subjected to more than 30 hours of freezing rain between the evening of March 28 and March 30, including Peterborough, Belleville, and Trenton and the surrounding areas, the weather agency said. Further east in Ottawa, city residents were treated to a blanket of snow followed by 13 hours of freezing rain.

Toronto was not as hard hit by the icy spring storm as its surrounding areas like Richmond Hill, the Durham region, and Barrie, where fallen trees left residents without power.

Alectra Utilities, which provides service to the Golden Horseshoe region, said in a social media post it was still hard at work on March 31 due to the “extensive damage” from ice and fallen trees which “is making progress slow.”

As of 9:30 a.m., approximately 3,000 customers in Barrie were still without power. The utility, which also services Penetanguishene, also had crews deployed to that region where more than 1,300 customers remained in the dark.

Premier Doug Ford said the province is “actively working with communities” impacted by the ice storm “to keep people safe and restore power as quickly as possible.”

“Hydro crews and local authorities are working around the clock, and Ontario Corps will continue to dispatch personnel and equipment to support wherever they are needed, including for flood protection, debris removal and food services,” he said in a March 30 social media post.

The icy storm also had impacts on Ontario roads with dozens of collisions, according to a post from the East Region Ontario Provincial Police. The majority of the crashes on March 29 resulted in no or minor injuries, but one was fatal, police said.

The fatal collision on Highway 138 north of Monkland involved two tractor-trailers and a passenger vehicle. The crash occurred just before 9:30 a.m. March 29, police said. Additional details about the crash have yet to be released.