Thousands of B.C. residents without power as 2nd storm moves through

Posted November 8, 2026 10:25 am

2 min read

2:24 Impacts of storm system hitting B.C.’s coast

Thousands of British Columbians remain without power after the second in a series of storms pelted the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island.

Approximately 135,000 residents had no power at the height of the storm about 1 a.m. local time Sunday. That number had dropped to about 63,000 as of 7 a.m.

Surrey, Duncan, Port Hardy and Prince George were among the hardest hit, according to BC Hydro. Those areas saw strong winds bring down branches and trees that damaged power lines, poles and other electrical equipment.

Sunday’s power outages add to the more than 380,000 outages seen since Friday when the first of the storms started to hit the province. Approximately 317,000 customers have had their power restored so far, but winds are not expected to subside until later in the day, causing additional concern in some areas.

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“We prepared for this storm and had crews and resources ready to respond immediately,” said Whitney Deane, spokesperson for BC Hydro. “Our crews are making good progress, but with strong winds continuing this morning, we expect to see additional damage and outages before conditions improve.”

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The utility says it will provide updated restoration estimates as crews reach outage locations, but reminds people to stay at least 10 metres away from downed, damaged or low-hanging power lines and call 911 to report them.

This weekend’s storms have been the result of successive atmospheric rivers making their way across B.C. Coastal communities have been warned of rising water levels, while the mainland is facing damaging winds.

Environment Canada has issued a slew of wind and rainfall warnings for the island and Lower Mainland, with winds expected to gust up to 90 km/h. Rainfall amounts of up to 50 mm could be seen in some areas including parts of Metro Vancouver along the North Shore.

Special weather statements have also been forecast for the B.C. Interior including the Cariboo, Fraser Canyon, 100 Mile House, South Thompson, the Coquihalla Highway and the Okanagan Connector. The statement says wind gusts ranging from 60 to 80 km/h will blow through, but cautions winds will ease slightly before an incoming cold front brings a strong push of up to 90 km/h gusts late this morning for western regions. The winds will ease by this evening.

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After cautioning of potential cancellations Saturday, most BC Ferries services are operating Sunday. Those between Metro Vancouver and Nanaimo are proceeding, while the departures from Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen are also operating.

A third storm expected to hit Monday may bring a more prolonged period of rainfall across B.C.’s coast through next week, Environment Canada said.