Windstorm Leaves Thousands In The Dark

BRITISH COLUMBIA -- A powerful wind and thunderstorm has raced through Southern B.C.

The storm brought down trees and knocked out power to tens-of-thousands of residents and businesses.

Huge sections of south Vancouver Island from Victoria to Nanaimo were without power.

The islands of Pender, Saturna, Mayne and Galiano are completely in the dark.

B.C. Hydro also reports spot power outages from Chilliwack to Sechelt.

A Hydro spokesperson says almost all the problems are caused by trees coming down over power lines.

Those heavy winds are also responsible for blowing over a ship-loading crane at Westshore Terminal in Delta. An operator was inside the cab of the crane when it plunged into the water. He was pulled to safety by two dock workers and is now in hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Source: Canadian Press