THOUSANDS of West Vancouver hydro customers were in the dark Wednesday morning as a heavy dump of wet snow brought minor chaos to the North Shore.
Roughly 11,000 residences and businesses between the Lions Gate Bridge and Caulfeild Drive - including Park Royal shopping centre - had their power knocked out around 9: 20 a.m., according to BC Hydro spokeswoman Simi Heer.
Oddly enough, the power outage had nothing to do with the nasty weather, Heer said.
"Something within the substation caused the entire circuit to trip, and that's a safety function that's built into the system, so if a transformer or another piece of equipment fails, those safeties kick in," she said.
"But we're not sure why the circuit tripped in this instance."
A BC Hydro electrician resolved the problem around 10: 45 a.m.
The outage resulted in a very busy morning for West Vancouver Fire and Rescue as the on-and-off power triggered dozens of fire alarms across the district and trapped a few people in elevators.
Despite wicked road conditions, only two minor car accidents were reported to the fire service during the turbulent day, according to assistant fire chief Martin Ernst.
"It was quite an amazing day in all respects," Ernst said.
It was a similarly quiet day in North Vancouver, with fewer calls for service than Tuesday, which saw comparatively less snow, according to the RCMP.
"There have been a few incidents but no serious injuries, no vehicles going off roads," said Cpl. Richard De Jong, North Vancouver RCMP spokesman. "Yesterday kind of caught us off guard whereas today, motorists are realizing that it's wintertime. We're hoping people drive with caution and care, with proper tires on and be patient."
While the Lower Mainland has seen its first blast of winter weather, forecasters are calling for mostly rain between now and Christmas.
