Photo by Whitehorse Star
CGC available for those with no power
As part of the city’s emergency preparedness plans, the Canada Games Centre will be converted into a warming centre for those without power during prolonged electrical supply failures, the city said this morning.
As part of the city’s emergency preparedness plans, the Canada Games Centre will be converted into a warming centre for those without power during prolonged electrical supply failures, the city said this morning.
The move came after numerous power system failures have plunged thousands of Yukoners into frigid darkness this week.
On Thursday, outages lasted for hours in Watson Lake and the Takhini Hot Springs area.
Watson Lake experienced a complete town outage just after 5 p.m. due to a “suspected fault on the powerline,” ATCO Electric Yukon spokesperson Erin MacDonald said in an email this morning. The failure impacted 970 customers and their family members.
MacDonald said most customers had power back on within an hour, but extreme temperatures forced the utility’s crews to restore the rest in smaller sections.
Crews had to inspect the cross-country portion of the powerline, toward the airport, before deeming it was safe to energize. The extended outage affected 40 customers, MacDonald said, and the entire town had power restored by 10:17 p.m.
ATCO had less information about the power loss in the Takhini Hot Springs area, saying only that it was “an isolated incident due to a customer equipment issue.”
A social media post from ATCO at 9:10 p.m. said the company had received reports of outages in the area and crews were responding.
A subsequent post at 10:52 p.m. said all power had been restored in the area.
There’s no word on how many customers were affected.
There were also outages in Porter Creek and Pelly Crossing on Wednesday.
The outage in Porter Creek lasted one hour in the evening.
A downed livewire affected 300 customers, and 1,200 customers lost power during a controlled outage while crews worked on the line
In Pelly Crossing, the main village lost power just before noon.
A crew was dispatched shortly after, but only arrived around 4 p.m. During the restoration effort, malfunctioning equipment caused a community-wide outage, impacting 214 customers total. Power was restored to all customers just after 6 p.m.
The week started off with outages in neighbourhoods around Whitehorse following a record-high demand for electricity, Yukon Energy said Monday.
The utility’s lack of anticipation for the power demand during an extreme cold snap caused that outage.
Power failures this week have been a major concern as Environment Canada has issued extreme cold warnings for the territory since last Friday. In some communities, including Mayo, temperatures have dropped below -50 C with the wind chill at times this week.
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Comments (22)
Up 3 Down 1
DL on Dec 31, 2022 at 9:19 pm
Most residential tenants are living in units that are completely dependent on electricity for heating. Since these prolonged power failures have occurred on a regular basis these past few months (another one tonight... sigh...) , then landlords should invest in backup heating systems, which will be cheaper in the long run compared to replacing frozen water pipes and associated water damage.
Up 18 Down 8
Heathen on Dec 29, 2022 at 6:05 pm
@Yukoner85:
It truly is remarkable to see the progress of your argument. As you stated from your first post, things are going swimmingly and the majority of people you know are happy and content under the dear leader. But in your further reply you acknowledge the absolute shambles of current economic prospects and how over the span of decades the middle class in North America has continued to be taken for a ride by our democratically elected leaders. Yet you simply shrug at this, content with your $800 a month handout and you cheerfully conclude that maybe if they stopped slaughtering each other in Ukraine things might get better?
Clearly you are a man of firm convictions. An example to us all!
One last item because it made me chuckle is your contention that I am trying "hard" to make the international inflationary issue one of concern to Canadians and that if I don't like the dear party I should simply leave the country. Again, your iron convictions leave me speechless but now with your educating insights, I too see that plebs whining about losing social mobility or doubting our dear leaders should simply be exiled henceforth. Can't have the malcontents disturbing the happy life our leaders have built for us, eh?
Up 17 Down 0
Nathan Living on Dec 29, 2022 at 1:37 pm
Free daycare, a warm safe place if there is no power or an emergency.
Many unfilled positions at the City and many government jobs available. A federal government that seems to think running a deficit is not a problem. A stock market that seems to be carrying on as if nothing is wrong with the Canadian financial situation. What can go wrong?
Maybe housing prices will go down or even collapse, who knows. I would like see entry level smaller sized homes built for younger people which are affordable.
It seems many young couples who have two working parents have it all with a home and more toys that you can shake a stick at then there are the many others who pay incredibly high rent and they clearly are struggling. I have low expectations for the city housing committee and various governments because they simply have not supplied lower cost housing which is so badly needed.
Up 21 Down 0
Oya on Dec 29, 2022 at 12:45 pm
@ Heathen.... your statement "YEC is drifting rudderless" pretty much sums it up for me.
Who is in charge and WHY are they STILL in charge? Do they have a strategic plan? If so, is the plan to just continue to purchase more and more diesel generators as we are forced to move to full-electric everything?
For the record, the outage in PC lasted much more than one hour.
Thank you to the linesmen/women who braved the cold to help us all. So thankful for all you do!
Up 5 Down 5
SH on Dec 29, 2022 at 10:17 am
JG, I'm pretty sure the CGC is equipped with backup generators.
Up 7 Down 11
Yukoner85 on Dec 28, 2022 at 9:05 pm
Hey "Yukon Long Before"
I agree, It would be nice to go back to the good old days, but that is never going to happen now. Our political and economic system have become obsessed with removing taxes on coporations and the richest in society which also means removing supports for the little guy to pay for it. In the past, in North America at least, most jobs came with benefits, pensions and many were unionized. Now its a race to the bottom to see how little a business can give to their employee without losing them. The wealth gap has accelerated with more tax cuts. So without going back to a more equitable society, yeah I am happy with subsidized daycare and other social programs. $800 a month might not seem like a lot to you but its been a major relief to my family. If you are more concerned with inflation and buying power, good luck to you trying to solve that international problem. I really don't think it will get better until the war in Ukraine comes to a close and supply chains catch up after the beating they took during covid. Though even that is looking shaky now with a massive covid wave spreading through China which is where most supply chains originate.
@Heathen You are trying hard to make the international inflationary issue one that Canada (or Yukon?) is largely responsible for and I have no idea why unless you are a conservative or socialist partisan trying to pretend that a different party in power would somehow be better. As you say, the grits have been in power through most of Canada's history and I think Canada is a great progressive country and I am happy to live here. If you think it is much better elsewhere like in the libertarian leaning United States perhaps, where the rich are uber rich and the poor are dirt poor with little to no safety net, then take your family and move across the border.
Up 13 Down 0
John on Dec 28, 2022 at 8:58 pm
It is safe to say that if you want surety of supply when it comes to keeping your home warm at minimum you should have two to even three sources of heat. You should not rely on others to keep you warm due to a lack of preparedness on your part. Inverters are a good example of hooking up as an emergency back up to your heating appliances, but alas pretty damn near cost prohibitive if your only source of heat is electric. The other alternative is a generator that you can either activate or have it activate for you (the later is a tad more costly). Most homes can get by quite easily with a 7000 watt generator. You may not be able to use the heavy demander's, like dish washers, driers, electric ovens, etc. The other cost is the hook up to your meter. All the can be arranged by some of the shops in town. Word of advise. If you are going to get a generator spend a little more and get quality. My experience with the CT & HH specials is that are not reliable and usually fail in cold weather to start. I have a 6500i Honda that will start at even -40. Honda make great equipment. Fuel capacity is good for 8-10 hours depending on the demand. The trick of course is the battery making sure it is either heated or quickly accessible to boost from a portable booster. Also use synthetic oil.
In our home with have 3 sources of heat - and the fall back is wood of the three. The advantage you will have with wood is that you can cook your meals on it if need be. For us it is critical to have a generator as we have a well and septic system. Both of these require electric for water pump and also the heat trace to both so they don't freeze. We can even plug a vehicle in to run constantly (but sorry no electric vehicles you would need a larger generator - big bucks).
Old time Yukoners know the value of what I am saying. When the Faro mine was running we could guarantee several power outages a month - some lasting 4-6 hours. Folks need to remember where we live. We are geographically disconnected from our southern neighbours. If we have a catastrophic event with the grid we need to prepare for at least 72 hours before help will arrive. In fact I would go beyond that benchmark and be prepared for double that. You don't want to suffer the same fate as has happened in Buffalo and Quebec right now.
Too many folks come to the Yukon with no insight as to the fact that we live on the edge of the Arctic and are great distances of other major centres. It would be best for people to realize that the primary onus lies with ourselves to be prepared. If you are incapable of looking after yourself, thinking that is the job of the government, then you have perhaps come to the wrong place to live and should very seriously if this in fact the right place for you. Don't become a liability to the community because you do nothing to prepare yourself believing that everyone else will come to save you. I am not talking about people who are disabled or infirm.
Think and plan ahead. Yup you may not need it that extra insurance, but I can tell you from living here all my life that shyte will happen - it is just the when.
Up 29 Down 12
Heathen on Dec 28, 2022 at 1:58 pm
@Yukoner85
Life has gotten better? All down to subsidized daycare? I’m happy to hear that you feel you and your friends are prospering but I suspect that is more down to your lowered expectations and possibly a need to show loyalty to the dear party. A casual glance at standards of living, purchasing power parity etc paint a very different picture across Canada. The middle class is being strangled and the prospects for young Canadians has dimmed considerably. Employment is great but when you continue to see your purchasing power dwindle (even before the inflationary crisis) are Canadians really prospering? Is this purely the result of the dear party? No, but the dear party, at the very least has done little to counteract this continual drain. And bear in mind, the Grits have been in power for much of the history of our nation so they’ve certainly had ample opportunity. This abdication of the core responsibilities of government produces results like poor energy infrastructure or at the very least organizations like YEC are drifting rudderless as problems continue to mount. All of our political parties have failed the people and as we move further into the 2020s without a course correction we will continue to decline as a country. Subsidized daycare is nice but remember the party that gave that to you is actively stealing your children’s future.
Up 33 Down 10
Yukoner Long Before ‘85 on Dec 28, 2022 at 12:20 pm
Hi Yukoner 85. All I can say is the system has you right where it wants you in 2022 if you’re happy that there’s subsidized daycare so that you and your wife can both slave away to try and afford an overpriced house and hopefully keep your heads above water.
As for me, I’d gladly go back the days of my fathers Yukon when my mother stayed at home to raise us kids while my father made enough money from one income to cover everything including nice yearly family vacations. We didn’t need food banks back then or emergency heating centres and the lights stayed on as well. Those sad kind of things happened in 3rd world countries, not Canada and we’d read about them in the news never imagining in our worst nightmares that was what Yukons future held in store.
Your comment reminds me of the old saying that if you throw a frog in boiling water it will jump right back out but if you slowly turn the temperature up it will sit there until it boils oblivious to the danger. Anyways, you keep enjoying those crumbs that the government throws your way to make you think you have it good.
Up 20 Down 47
Yukoner85 on Dec 26, 2022 at 10:17 pm
Actually Groucho, life has gotten better. As someone with a young family, the subsidized daycare has made a huge difference for my family. Also, everyone I know is currently working, from tradesmen to servers and everything in between. Jobs and the economy are what's important to me along with mental health. So I'm sorry that your life has gotten worse, maybe you could try making some changes for your own personal situation, but as I say, I'm quite happy with my life right now, as are the vast majority of people I know.
Up 26 Down 6
DL on Dec 26, 2022 at 12:06 am
So many oil furnaces and propane heaters in the Yukon are operated from an electrical panel control. When there's a power failure, these heating appliances simply don't work. Even though the oil or propane is there, it won't flow without the electronic panel control.
Now, there's something positive the government could do to help Yukoners gain a bit more security with home heating in case of power failures: install battery backup systems for to those electronic control panels. Or better yet, switch to oil & propane heating devices that don't require any electricity. They exist.
Up 27 Down 12
Steve Bannon on Dec 25, 2022 at 10:41 am
Fine, okay! We’ll come clean! It was a diesel generator overload having to work harder in these cold temps to make the “hot springs”… Warmish…
Up 42 Down 18
Groucho d'North on Dec 25, 2022 at 9:20 am
Have you noticed that since the "Progressives" came to power things are generally getting worse?
Up 31 Down 13
2030 on Dec 24, 2022 at 6:07 pm
Thanks to this government, the only thing left to eat will be the ice in the rink. Maybe some water if we are fortune enough to be allowed to warm up the ice, and ourselves. New world order if full effect
Up 40 Down 14
MAID Corp on Dec 24, 2022 at 5:09 pm
Dear What Century Is This? on Dec 23, 2022 at 3:59 pm:
We used to have people who could think helpful thoughts… Now, not so much. Having only one source of heat, especially electric only, is dangerously stupid. It’s almost like it’s part of the L-NDP death cult narrative. Can’t heat your home? Have you thought about MAID?
Up 54 Down 5
In the Dark on Dec 24, 2022 at 2:33 pm
" the power loss in the Takhini Hot Springs area, ...was “an isolated incident due to a customer equipment issue.”"
I suspect a lot of us would like to know how "a customer equipment issue” can cause a widespread power outage.
Up 39 Down 6
Groucho d'North on Dec 24, 2022 at 1:13 pm
With all the new Yukoners who have moved here from warmer climes over the past few years, most do not know the dos & don'ts of surviving a Yukon winter, especially when things stop working like they should due to the cold.
I believe the emergency response agencies in YG and municipal governments could do a much better job in proactively sharing information on how to work through these situations safely and effectively. Proactively means before the nasty stuff encounters the fan. Some publications with the information will work much better than websites when the power goes out too. This material used to be available - why isn't it now?
Up 37 Down 4
drum on Dec 23, 2022 at 6:52 pm
The elevater going to the third floor (walking stick which a lot of older people use) has not been working at the
CGC since early November. When will it be fixed?
Up 37 Down 14
bonanzajoe on Dec 23, 2022 at 5:05 pm
So, how come all this renewable energy sources didn't kick in?
Up 45 Down 7
What Century Is This? on Dec 23, 2022 at 3:59 pm
What century is this? Remember 50 years ago when we used to be able to take a reliable electricity supply and warm homes for granted with barely a second thought given to the matter?
Up 30 Down 10
Charlie's Aunt on Dec 23, 2022 at 3:46 pm
Time for neighbourhoods to have their own warming centre. Someone's house designated where residents can snuggle up together in their snowmobile suits and parkas. Only requirement - bring your own flashlight. Bit tough to get to CGC for some if their electric car won't start and oh my, the pollution from exhaust in CGC parking lot from the gas burners left running, unless COW has a booster service on hand!
The outage in Porter Ck was Tuesday and for the customers affected by down line and then the controlled outage, it lasted 2.5 hrs. Big thanks to the crews who venture out to fix these issues in all weather.
Up 46 Down 16
JG on Dec 23, 2022 at 3:08 pm
Thank goodness the solar panels at the CGC will keep us warm, eh?