B.C. snow storm leaves 19,000 without power after storm; down from 75,000

The utility said the hardest hit areas were the Vancouver Island communities of Victoria, Nanaimo and Duncan. (Pixabay photo)

VICTORIA — BC Hydro says about 19,000 customers remain without power because of heavy, wet snow and freezing rain.

That’s down from about 75,000 customers who lost electricity along British Columbia’s South Coast on Tuesday.

The utility said the hardest hit areas were the Vancouver Island communities of Victoria, Nanaimo and Duncan.

BC Hydro says its crews “continue to make good progress” in getting power restored and that around 6,000 customers in remote areas would likely remain without electricity through the night.

The Transportation Ministry said snow was falling at a rate of 10 to 12 centimetres every hour in some areas of the province resulting in poor road conditions.

The southbound lanes of Highway 5 between Merritt and Hope were closed much of Tuesday afternoon when a commercial vehicle spun out and a travel advisory was issued for the open northbound lanes.

Environment Canada says the snow was expected to taper off by Wednesday morning after dumping up to 18 centimetres on Vancouver Island and up to 30 centimetres in the Interior and southeast B.C.