Hydro lines will take 'several days' to repair as Toronto investigates massive power outage
Hydro One says it will take “several days” to repair hydro lines that were damaged after an upright crane in the lake slammed into them and caused a massive power outage downtown on Thursday.
The outage occurred in the city’s financial district at around 12:30 p.m., leaving approximately 10,000 customers without power at its peak.
A portion of the Eaton Centre was left in the dark, forcing hundreds of stores to temporarily close. The outage also knocked out power in parts of the Hospital for Sick Children's campus.
Traffic lights were down in some intersections causing heavy traffic and significant streetcar delays. However, the outage did not affect subways.
Toronto Fire said crews responded to a number of elevator rescues, but no injuries connected to the outage were reported yesterday.
Hydro One says the outage was caused when a barge moving an upright crane in the Port Lands area hit overhead high voltage transmission lines.
“Now, what happened when that crane hit the line resulted in a downstream effect where a surge of power affected a nearby station on the Esplanade that we were actually using to reroute power to Toronto Hydro,” Hydro One Spokesperson Tiziana Baccega Rosa told CP24 Friday morning.
The City of Toronto says the barge was being operated by a subcontractor to Southland-Astaldi Joint Venture (SAJV), which is a contractor for the Ashbridges Bay Treatment Plant outfall project.
Crews were reportedly preparing to move equipment into the lake for the project when the incident occurred.
“We're going to use stone that needs to be placed out in the lake and the subcontractors were going to do that work for us but they were moving equipment. The event occurred off-site while they were doing their preparatory work,” Lou Di Gironimo, Toronto Water’s general manager told CP24 Friday.
Emergency workers monitor the site of a collision between a barge carrying a crane and power lines are photographed in Toronto, on Thursday, August 11, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov
Baccega Rosa said Hydro One crews were able to reroute about 50 per cent of the power shortly after the incident, which resulted in power being restored in some areas quicker than others.
Crews then had to stop their efforts and wait for the fire department to clear the site for workers to safely enter and reroute the rest of the power.
A darkened video board is shown at Yonge-Dundas Square on Thursday during a massive power outage. (Mike Campoli)
Once crews gained access, they were able to reroute all power to Toronto Hydro and power was fully restored downtown by 8 p.m.
Baccega Rosa said there are established safety protocols to stay a minimum of 10 metres away from power lines, which were not followed yesterday.
“And that's (for) anyone whether, you know, you’re a barge passing under them (power lines) or if you're doing work around your house and you need to trim the tree branches around the line connecting your home. You know, everyone was very lucky yesterday that there was not a safety incident and no one was hurt as a result of this,” she said.
The city has launched an investigation into the incident and has requested a full report from SAJV to understand what happened.
“So the big thing that we're going to look at is what happened? Who was in charge of the subcontractor work? What were the safety procedures in place at the time? And then what exactly happened when the crane hit the wires?,” Di Gironimo said.
Di Gironimo could not confirm if the subcontractors will face any consequences for the incident.
“That will be part of the investigation to find out what happened. What were those precautions that were supposed to be in place. What was followed? What wasn't?”
He said the city is meeting with SAJV next week and plans to complete the investigation within a matter of weeks.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Woman, 18, killed by co-worker's vehicle on Highway 1 in Moose Jaw
Moose Jaw police say an 18-year-old woman who was at work has died from injuries she sustained in a collision with a vehicle being driven by her co-worker last Thursday.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
MPs to vote on NDP motion calling on Canada to recognize Palestinian statehood
Members of Parliament will vote Monday on a motion from the federal New Democrats, calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine,' among a range of other calls to action in regards to the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict.