North-central Saskatchewan Continues Cleanup Efforts Following Weekend Storm

Crews in north-central Saskatchewan are continuing cleanup efforts following severe storms over the weekend that caused widespread power outages. SaskPower reported that approximately 50,000 customers were affected by outages on Saturday evening, impacting areas including Prince Albert, Melfort, and Nipawin. Power was largely restored by Sunday morning.

“

It wasn’t just one single storm that caused it. We had another storm on Sunday that caused outages in the northeast.

However, another storm on Sunday caused further outages in the northeastern part of the region. As of Tuesday afternoon, a few hundred customers remained without power, with SaskPower expecting full restoration by the end of the day. The utility noted that the weekend storms inflicted "extensive damage" on both large transmission lines and secondary systems, making the restoration process more challenging.

“

In terms of the total number of outages, it’s the highest we’ve seen not only this year but in several years over the course of a short period.

The village of Aylsham, located southeast of Nipawin, declared a local state of emergency on Tuesday afternoon. This declaration allows the village to coordinate emergency response, request assistance, and take necessary steps to protect residents. Residents like Yvonne Angelica described the significant damage, with numerous broken poles and lines requiring extensive repair work.

“

This declaration allows the Village to coordinate emergency response efforts, request additional assistance, and take the necessary steps to protect the health and safety of our residents.

For residents like Cori Jones, the storm was a terrifying experience. She described her house moving during the storm, raising fears of a tornado. Jones, who was without power for three days, called the situation a "nightmare," highlighting the difficulties faced by those without backup generators, such as her mother-in-law whose freezers full of food were lost.

“

There are so many damaged lines, so many broken poles that are taking them. They were here yesterday from eight in the morning till 10:30 at night.