Power outages were again reported yesterday – this time also affecting Pickering, Ajax and Whitby, and Clarington for the second day.
Yesterday was the second day of a heatwave, which Environment Canada earlier said could see mercury rising to as high as 37°C. And with hot and humid air, the Air Quality Health Index could approach the high-risk category.
Bowmanville residents reported loss of power at around 6:10pm. “Is anyone aware when the power will be restored. It’s more than 3 hrs now.😓,” said a post after 9pm.
Elexicon Energy, the utility provider for most of Durham, yesterday blamed the high winds.
On Tuesday, parts of Bowmanville, Orono and Newcastle saw a full day power outages, which Elexicon Energy said was due to loss of supply from Hydro One.
Short But Severe Storm
“We apologize for the inconvenience caused by this [Wednesday] evening’s outages following a short but severe storm,” it said.
“In addition to storm-related service interruptions, we were experiencing a technical issue affecting our outage map and customer outage communications,” it added.
Elexicon apologized for the limited real-time outage information typically available through its digital channels. “Our teams have worked to restore the issue and outages will begin to appear on the map.”
The utility provider said crews have been dispatched and were actively responding. “Our customer service team is answering calls as quickly as possible, and we will work 24/7 until power is restored. We greatly appreciate your patience and understanding as we work through this,” said Elexicon.
Canada Day Celebrations
Several outdoor Canada Day gatherings were cancelled. The City of Oshawa announced that due to inclement weather and risk of thunderstorms, the Canada Day celebrations at Lakeview Park were cancelled.
The Town of Ajax Canada Day event at the Ajax Fairgrounds was on hold until 8 pm due to the weather conditions. The event was said to have resumed at 8 pm with a modified program including fireworks.
Ottawa’s National Canada Day Evening Show, as well as the fireworks display were also cancelled.
Canadian Heritage released a statement saying “In the interest of public safety and due to extreme weather and the condition of the site, we unfortunately have made the difficult decision to cancel the National Canada Day Evening Show. The fireworks display has also been cancelled. This decision has not been made lightly. The safety of the public, the performers, the volunteers, and the crews remains our top priority.”
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Parts of Clarington sans power all day at start of heat wave