Squirrel behind power outage that affected 9,000 North Vancouver customers

A squirrel is the cause of a power outage Saturday, which knocked out power for more than 9,000 BC Hydro customers in North Vancouver.

When the power went out around 10:50 am, BC Hydro spokesperson Kevin Aquino said crews went to investigate the issue.

We’re aware of multiple outages in the #NorthVan area affecting approximately 9,000 customers. Crews are responding and will share updates here: https://t.co/IaFYGMWeTW pic.twitter.com/Gr1Emiocel

— BC Hydro (@bchydro) January 14, 2023

According to Aquino, crews then found a squirrel that managed to enter the substation and took out several circuits, which caused the power outage.

“Once our crew was able to help the squirrel exit the facility, we were able to restore power back to the customers,” Aquino said.

The power was restored just before 12:15 pm.

Aquino added it’s hard to say how often animals are the cause of power outages but it does happen.

“We do see some power outages… as a result of animals coming in contact with their infrastructure and electrical equipment,” he said.

However, the leading cause for power outages is adverse weather and trees.