Due to heavy workload for BC Hydro during a stormy season, Christmas lights along Marine Avenue are being taken down this week. A BC Hydro spokesperson said the job has been pushed back from early January, when the seasonal decorations are usually removed from poles along Marine.
Ted Olynyk, manager of community relations for Sunshine Coast and Vancouver Island, confirmed the lights were to be taken down the week of February 1, probably Wednesday morning.
“It’s been on the job board for the guys to get to, but the storm events pushed everything back,” said Olynyk. “It’s a question of hydro poles that desperately need to be put in place, or taking Christmas lights down.”
Olynyk estimated the cost to keep the LED lights up for the extra month would only be in the range of $20, an amount covered by hydro, in addition to the work hours putting lights up and taking them down.
City of Powell River director of infrastructure Tor Birtig said the city’s parks department supplies the lights and BC Hydro is responsible for installing and uninstalling them when schedules allow.
“We deliver the lights to BC Hydro, they put them up, then after the Christmas holidays they arrange when workers are available to take them down, and they take them down and deliver them back to the yard,” said Birtig.
A number of storms knocked out power to the Powell River area during January. Olynyk said due to BC Hydro’s workload during the storm season and the low cost of running the LED lights, taking down the Christmas decorations was bumped lower on the company’s task list.
Fixing damaged power lines and getting power back on for customers is the first priority, he said. “We wanted to take the lights down sooner, but serving our customers is going to be first and foremost.”
