Why and how we plan outages
Why we plan power outages
We must perform work on the electrical system to maintain its safe and efficient operation. To ensure the safety of work crews and the public, some of this work can only be completed with the power lines de-energized, which usually means an outage for some customers.
By planning the outage and doing the necessary work, our crews can prevent a potential unplanned emergency outage in the future, where a part of the system unexpectedly fails or malfunctions.
View our list of planned outages
How we choose outage dates and times
We consider various factors when finalizing a date:
- Safety:Â public and worker safety is always our primary concern. We need to make sure the work is done in the safest environment possible.
- Weather: some work can’t be done when it is raining, other work can be done under any weather conditions. This is why outages can be sometimes cancelled at the last minute.
- Schools:Â if an outage may affect a school, we work to ensure that it falls on a day when school isn’t in session.
- Community events:Â if there’s a community event or celebration scheduled, we’ll try to find another day.
- Traffic management:Â some work may cause disruptions to traffic. We need to work with municipal officials to ensure our work fits into their traffic management plans.
- Availability of experts:Â some of the work we must do is very specialized and can only be performed by crews with unique skills and equipment. If this is the case, we must schedule work around their availability.
Steps to take before and after a planned outage in your area
First, keep your contact information up to date in your MyHydro account. We’ll be able to contact you faster if there’s a change to your outage.
Before a planned outage begins, turn off electric heaters, major appliances, and unplug sensitive electronics to protect them from damage
For the first hour after the power comes back on, only plug in or turn on those electronics and appliances that you really need. This gives the system time to stabilize and prevents it from getting overloaded.
Be prepared for unplanned outages
We can all take steps to prepare for an outage when we know it’s going to happen. But most often, power outages are caused by factors beyond our control – wind, lightning, car accidents, etc. – and can happen at any moment.
Emergency kits and emergency plans are essential ways to prepare. Learn what should be in them, as well as other safety tips and preparation checklists, via the links below.