Prospect of power cuts in B.C. due to high winds recollects 2015 event
With B.C.'s prolonged drought and blustery winds in the forecast Monday, there is the potential for localized power outages -- making us look back at the 2015 blackout.
Do you remember the 2015 South Coast blackout?
BC Hydro faced the largest outage in history, with the roots of the outage severity pointed towards drought.
The primary factor: The three-month period leading up to the late-August 2015 event included only about 10 mm of rainfall. This drought seriously stressed trees, making them susceptible to failure.
The deciduous trees also still had a full canopy, and this extra weight was no match for the 90 km/h winds that swept through the South Coast.
In 2022, it's been months without active weather, so the first test is later on Monday as a moisture-starved cold front slices across the area. The front brings some appreciable rainfall to the Central and North Coast, and some sprinkles and wet snow along the spine of the Rocky Mountains, but nothing to the South Coast.
Wind speeds will peak out of the northwest across the Strait of Georgia, sustained at 40-60 km/h. Gusts over 60 km/h might be enough to bring down frail branches and stressed trees.
Here's a map of Metro Vancouver during the peak winds, targeting southwest sections of the region the hardest.
Here are the ferry routes that will have a choppier sailing than the past few weeks. The winds are unlikely to disrupt BC Ferries.
Greater Victoria escapes the gustier winds and remains breezy at most.
Even with the historically dry conditions, winds of this calibre are highly unlikely to cause significant damage. At most, a few thousand customers could lose power.
The power grid will remain unusually susceptible through the season. Victoria reached 94 days without rainfall over 1 mm, the longest such streak in history.
Thumbnail courtesy of BC Hydro/Twitter.
Stay tuned to The Weather Network for the latest forecast updates.