Ice Storm 2017 – A thank you to our customers

February 7 2017, 09:00 AM

On behalf of everyone at NB Power who worked on restoration efforts in the wake of the ice storm that hit our province two weeks ago, I want to thank customers for their extraordinary patience and support during this particularly challenging time. After two weeks of incredible work by all our employees and mutual aid partners, we now have all storm-affected customers reconnected to our grid.

The damage left by this storm was some of the most significant our utility has ever seen, with poles toppling over from the weight of ice build-up in the Acadian Peninsula to ice-coated trees contacting with kilometres long stretches of lines in Moncton and Kent County. The work required to bring our customers back online was complex, and difficult weather conditions only added extra challenges for our crews to restore customers in a safe, timely manner.

We are grateful to our partner utilities and contractors who came to help us out in restoration efforts. We also deeply appreciate the support from Premier Brian Gallant, municipal leaders, staff and volunteers from the New Brunswick Emergency Measures Organization,the Canadian Red Cross and the Armed Forces who showed leadership and care for our customers in their communities. We also want to acknowledge the hundreds of volunteers who provided comfort and hot food in shelters and warming stations, and who went door to door to ensure our customers were safe and cared for.

These past two weeks have been incredibly trying for our customers and our employees. I spent a week in the areas impacted by the storm and was inspired by the collaboration and goodwill I witnessed from our fellow New Brunswickers. Everyone worked together to ensure that our customers were safe and comfortable and that our crews were well-fed, rested and prepared to restore power in challenging conditions. 

I can’t thank everyone enough for all of the support we have received and I know the crews are very appreciative of all kind words and tokens of appreciation.

We still have crews at work in the Acadian Peninsula responding to the lingering impacts of this system and we will keep working there and elsewhere to ensure our infrastructure remains strong.

During the next few weeks, we will be taking the time to reflect back on our efforts and what we can improve upon for future events, as we always do. 

Winter isn’t behind us yet, and we will continue to monitor future weather events to ensure we are prepared to face whatever those storms bring in order to keep our customers safe and connected.

Again, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you.

Gaëtan Thomas

NB Power President and CEO