mannielay-
a neighbor drowned in her basement!
i'm so sorry to hear that - how did that
happen? did you know her well?
i can see your lovely home in my minds eye
and am trying to assess the damage - did
you have much stored in your utility room?
are your scooters okay?
there is probably a substantial danger of
landslides now - have you heard anything like
that.
here's what i got about how the lower mainland
fared:
Storm hammers B.C.; 200,000 without power
Last Updated: Friday, December 15, 2006 | 7:20 AM PT
CBC News
The third powerful storm this week hammered southwestern B.C. overnight with high winds of up to 120 kilometres an hour, leaving nearly 200,000 families in the dark.
B.C. Hydro says the outages include Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, the Lower Mainland and the Fraser Valley. Vancouver, North Vancouver, Burnaby and Victoria are the hardest hit.
Work crews clear debris in Vancouver, early Friday morning.
(CBC) Hydro spokeswoman Elisha Morena told CBC Radio that many people who lost power in the latest outage can expect their lights to be out for much of the day.
There are major disruptions to the morning commute in Greater Vancouver, with the Lions Gate Bridge and the Stanley Park Causeway closed, and no SkyTrain service in Surrey because there is no power at the stations.
Extra buses are being pressed into service to help move Surrey commuters.
The Clark SkyTrain station in Vancouver is also without power, and was closed Friday morning.
Many traffic lights are out across the Lower Mainland and drivers are being warned to proceed with caution.
BC Ferries has cancelled the 5:15 and 7:45 morning sailings between Tsawwassen and Duke Point and Vancouver Island.
All schools in Delta have been closed, as has West Vancouver Secondary. There is also no bus service to the Simon Fraser University campus in Burnaby.
'Winds are just howling'
CBC's Kirk Williams in Vancouver said early Friday that the storm was pounding the Lower Mainland, with lightning visible in the sky over the North Shore Mountains.
"The winds are just howling. The trees are bending back and forth. It's going to be an incredibly damaging day."
Environment Canada's website said a wind warning for Greater Vancouver remained in effect early Friday, with winds 70 to 100 kilometres an hour still expected but diminishing in the morning, and the storm was moving across southern B.C.
"These damaging winds will abate early this morning as the system moves further inland," the website said.
Further south in Washington state and Oregon, the same system brought heavy rains that flooded streets and winds of up to 160 kilometres that knocked down trees.
The storm was blamed for three deaths in the northwestern U.S. More than 350,000 customers lost electricity in Oregon, while about 3,500 were without power in Washington on Thursday night.
Downed trees and debris have forced the closure of several highways in Washington and Oregon.
On Thursday, B.C. Hydro officials urged customers on Vancouver Island without power to leave their homes before the latest storm hit because they said the outages from earlier storms might not be fixed until Sunday.
Hydro officials said people should find another place to stay while crews work to restore power. |
