Manitoba Hydro making ‘significant progress’ restoring power after storm

Manitoba Hydro reports substantial progress in restoring electricity after a week of chaotic weather, including a tornado and severe storms, battered the province. While many customers are still in the dark, the number of outages has drastically decreased.

As of Thursday morning, only 1,400 customers remained without power, a significant drop from the 25,000 affected on Wednesday afternoon. Manitoba Hydro stated that crews are tackling three major outages and numerous smaller, scattered ones. Some of these locations present access challenges due to downed lines and wires.

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significant progress

The utility acknowledged the hardship faced by customers who have endured extended power outages. "Multiple crews are prioritizing these outages," a spokesperson said in a press release. Most storm-related power disruptions are anticipated to be largely resolved by the end of Thursday.

The severe weather, featuring high winds exceeding 100 km/h, heavy rain, and lightning, swept across Manitoba on Tuesday and Wednesday. Environment Canada confirmed at least one tornado touched down in St. Anne, and rainfall totals reached over 250 mm in the Stonewall area, leading to widespread flooding. A risk of thunderstorms persists for Winnipeg and southern Manitoba on Thursday.

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Some customers have been without power for an extended period of time, and the utility recognizes the difficulty this causes customers. Multiple crews are prioritizing these outages.