Almost 300,000 Hydro-Qubec customers still without power after strong winds hit province

Quebec Premier Franois Legaultsays that while the "vast majority" ofQuebecers will have their power restored this weekend, some could be in the dark for days to come.

About 294,000 Hydro-Qubec customers were still without electricity Saturday eveningafter strong winds and rain battered the province. At its peak, nearly a million customers had lost power.

• Sunday update:Hydro-Qubec works around-the-clock to restore power across province

Three hard-hit areas of the province will see delays in their power being restored due to the number of downed power lines the Beauceregion, the Lanaudire and the Laurentians, as well asthe area around Granby, Drummondville and Sherbrooke.

One death was being blamed onthe winds, after a 63-year-old man in Bromont, Que., about 87 kilometres east of Montreal, was struck by a falling tree Friday.

Provincial police saidthat the weather was also a likely factor in a fatal collision Friday evening inAbitibi-Tmiscamingue.

Kiriakos Thomopoulos, 70, andLucie Corriveau-Thomopoulos, 67, died in a head-on collision on Route 113 around 7 p.m. The two Laval, Que., residents were pronounced dead in hospital.

The occupants of the other vehicle sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

Winds over 100 km/h Friday

The outages are spread out across the province, but hardest hit is theMontrgie, where about 43,000 customers are still without power.

In Saint-Hyacinthe, winds gusted to over 100 km/h, toppling the canopy of a gas station.

Just south, in Saint-Pie, the wind toreoff the steeple of a church.

'Still a lot to do'

"It's an improvement, but there is still a lot to do," said Hydro-Qubec spokesperson Francis Labb.

About 1,000 hydro workers are on the ground Saturdaymorning working to restore power, and a crew of 40 workers from Detroitis arriving today to assist them. Workers from New Brunswick are also assisting.

"They often have to act like lumberjacks before they can even start to repair a line," said Labb, as downed trees are blocking access to damaged power lines.

About 2,500 trees have fallen on Hydro-Qubec infrastructure, knocking down some 250 hydro poles across the province.

While the peak number of outages was similar to the 1998 ice storm, Hydro-Qubec CEOric Martel said that only the utility's transmission capacity, not generation, was affected this time.

"We are very much aware that the cold is starting to set in," Martel said. He asked the public to keep their distance from hydro trucks, as branches may fall as they work to restore power.

Quebec Public Security MinisterGenevive Guilbaultthanked Quebecers for their patience and Hydro-Qubec for working day and night to restore power.

She said it was "encouraging" to seethe progress that had been made by Hydro-Qubec since Friday, and that the calmer weather expected today should also help.

Cleanup underway inEastern Townships

About 30 roads in the Eastern Townships flooded Friday, but the water is now starting to recede, Guilbault said.

Levels in the Saint-FranoisRiver in Sherbrooke havedropped back below 20 feet (six metres)after having exceeded 24 feet (7.3 metres)Friday afternoon.

"We went above 24 feet, which is huge," said Stphane Simoneau, head of the fire department."Historically, and from memory, this is only the third time that has happened."

City officials said 24 feet is the point at which they become concerned about more significant damage to nearby homes.

Over 250 residences were evacuated as a precaution Friday, and people will likely be able to return home by Sunday evening; city officials estimated there are about 50homes that have been seriously damaged by the flooding.

Most streets have reopened including those around Bishop's University but there are still half a dozen that will likely not reopen for several days.

Simoneau said more than 100 millimetres of rain fell on Sherbrooke on Thursday night, which was more than double what officials were expecting. He said it is especially stunning at this time of year.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Townships, mudslides washed away culverts, and in some places, entire sections of road.

In the Montreal area, more than 13,000 hydro customers are still in the dark, withmost outages in theCte-Des-NeigesNotre-Dame-De-Grceborough and West Island.

Starting at 9 a.m. Saturday,Cte-Des-NeigesNotre-Dame-De-Grce residents without power can warm up at:

• Saint-Raymond Centre (5600 Upper LachineRoad).
• Centre sportif Cte-des-Neiges (4880 Van Horne Avenue).
• Centre sportif Notre-Dame-de-Grce (6445 Monkland Avenue).
• CELO (5347 Cte-des-NeigesRoad).