The two 12-hour power outages on May 24 and June 7 were part of BC Hydro’s ongoing Jervis Inlet and Agamemnon Channel Power Line Replacement Project. Crews took advantage of this to replace poles and aging equipment, as well as trim trees that were too close to power lines on Cortes Island.
Precision Tree Service was brought in to trim trees. The company is based in Comox, and they worked two 16-hour days, leaving home at 6 a.m. and returning at about 10 p.m. Their work is now complete.
BC Hydro crews will continue to replace poles and aging equipment this week. Some residences have received outage notices specific to their street/area. A worklist copied from the BC Hydro planned outage map follows below.
What BC Hydro is doing?
The May 24 and June 7 outages affected approximately 14,000 BC Hydro customers in Powell River, Lund, Cortes Island, Texada Island, and Saltery Bay.
(Adapted from Google Maps)
They are part of an ongoing project to replace the aging 138-kilovolt (kV) power lines installed in the 1960s with new 230 kV lines, for increased system capacity and support for future growth.
According to BC Hydro:
“When the Jervis Inlet crossing is reinstalled, it will connect to new anchor towers located farther upslope so the upgraded line can use modern, higher-capacity conductors without requiring excessive tension to maintain safe clearance. Using the natural elevation creates a safer, more efficient design and ensures the upgraded line can carry the required electrical load while meeting clearance and operational requirements.”
“To support the new alignment, we are constructing a bypass line to safely reroute the existing 230 kV power line around the new tower locations. This will improve the reliability of both lines.”
The new Agamemnon Channel line is scheduled for completion in the Fall of 2026 and Jervis Inlet line in the Spring of 2027.
Links of Interest:
- Jervis Inlet and Agamemnon Channel Power Line Replacement Project – BC Hydro
- BC Hydro removes Agamemnon Channel power line crossing in major coastal upgrade milestone – BC Hydro
- BC Hydro planned outage map
- Articles about, or mentioning, BC Hydro on Cortes Island
Top image credit: A Precision Tree Service crew limbing trees for BC Hydro – Roy L Hales photo
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