Power outage began around 3 am

By Brian Konrad

Part of Hwy 1 closed in Saskatchewan

Snow and wind blamed for power outage and travel issues

Apr 5, 2022 | 7:36 AM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — Service has been restored to many parts of Medicine Hat but at last report, some customers without power after a weather-related failure that started just before 3 a.m.

Every available city utility staffer was called out to deal with the problem

City police started getting reports of multiple transformer failures as the outage cascaded across the distribution system.

The Medicine Hat Fire department also received numerous calls, some of them related to electrical hazards and alarms due to the power failure.

At one point more than 16,500 customers were without power.

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Fortis Alberta was also dealing with widespread outages due to the wind and the snow.

The weather brought down power lines and power poles and led to at least 18 outages across the southeast part of Alberta.

Crews are on their way, but they are still dealing with the wind and travel conditions, and safety is their top priority.

Customers can check on the progress of repairs by going to service.fortisalberta.com/.

The weather also causing travel issues, with Highway 41 south of the Trans Canada highway to the U.S. not recommended due to poor visibility in snow and blowing snow and slush and icy sections.

The Number 1 east from the Alberta border to the intersection at Highway 21 was closed as of 10 a.m.

Travel east from Highway 21 to Piapot along the Trans Canada Highway was not recommended.

Highway 21 from Leader south to the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park was also not recommended for travel.