From BC Hydro’s Restoring Your Power Infographic

When I was a kid, my dad worked for BC Hydro and was on-call for dealing with power outages. It was the late 70s, and he was a supervisor in a service centre that took calls from people reporting their power was out.

If the wind picked up, we made sure the beeper was turned on and visible by the phone. If it went off, our dad would get up at any time of day or night and drive 30 minutes in a storm to his workplace.

My younger brother and I felt proud of our dad and his important role in keeping people’s power on. Once I put on the song Riders on the Storm by the Doors, as a rally for my dad as he rushed to leave the house.

I thought about all this recently when I read this post on Twitter from BC Hydro: “Take a look at how our crews respond to outages in storms and what it takes to get the lights back on for everyone” – and links to its Restoring Power Infographic.

Hydro reports 11,125 calls from customers during last year’s storm season. The number is 1-888-POWERON.

Knowing who to call and taking other precautions will help you be ready, at work or at home. Check out