FortisBC asking for reduced energy use in Osoyoos due to damaged power lines

Photo: Casey Richardson

The Nk'Mip Creek Wildfire has damaged tow power lines in Osoyoos

Two FortisBC electricity transmission lines were damaged and de-energized due to the Nk'Mip Creek wildfire, and the company is asking for help with energy conservation to not overload their current system.

“ Without these two lines, we can still continue to deliver energy to our customers in the Osoyoos area. However, we do not have the same capacity on our system as we had previously so we're asking for help from our customers to lower their energy use as much as possible during peak times,” Jas Baweja, a Corporate Communications Specialist with FortisBC said over email.

With temperatures set to increase between 35-39 degrees Celsius through the long weekend, residents in the Osoyoos area are asked to lower their energy use between 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., the peak time of energy use.

“Last week when we asked residents to lower their energy use, we did see less electricity load on our system and we thank everyone who helped us during this time. We hope they are willing to help again.”

Some ways you can reduce your energy use include:

• Reduce air conditioning use
• Washing dishes by hand or setting the timers on dishwashers to run in the middle of the night
• Running laundry later in the evening or earlier in the day

Crews are in the process of determining what repairs are needed and planning out how and when they can make the necessary repairs.

“We appreciate the support of residents in the area who are lowering their energy use to help us keep the system stable so we can continue to deliver electricity to our customers.”

For more information visit the website here.