By Canadian Press

Ice storm overwhelms swath of New Brunswick: ‘People are definitely anxious’

Jan 26, 2017 | 2:45 AM

FREDERICTON — New Brunswickers have been warned it will be days before life returns to normal in parts of the province after a messy ice storm that snapped power poles, strained trees, and has left tens of thousands in the dark.

“When you’re driving on the streets, you’re manoeuvring around trees at every turn,” Miramichi Mayor Adam Lordon said Thursday afternoon. “People are definitely anxious, but they understand that the challenge at hand is immense.”

Communities surrounding Miramichi, one of the hardest hit areas, were covered in a thick layer of ice that weighed heavy on tree branches and downed power and telephone poles, more than a day after a blustery mix of freezing rain, ice pellets and strong winds moved through the Maritimes.

One resident described an atmosphere of panic and a row of roughly 50 cars waiting for the pumps at a gas station in Chatham, with many others driving seemingly aimless throughout surrounding communities in search of open businesses.

Petitcodiac Mayor Gerry Gogan said he’s lived in New Brunswick his entire life and has never seen so many people without power.

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About 80,000 NB Power customers were still without power late Thursday afternoon. Many of the outages were on the eastern edge of the province in a band that ran from north to south.

At the height of the storm Wednesday, more than 130,000 customers were out, said NB Power.

“The challenge … is that the impacts of the ice are spread across large parts of the province,” NB Power said on its website.

“Due to prolonged periods of freezing rain, we have seen a significant ice build-up impacting our lines and equipment, which were designed to exceed Canadian standards. Given the magnitude of the ice storm, this damage is minimal but does make for more complex restorations.”

The freezing rain pelted much of northern New Brunswick, closing schools throughout the province Wednesday and Thursday. The storm also moved into P.E.I. and Newfoundland, bringing freezing rain from west to east through the night.

More than two dozen warming centres were set up throughout the province, and Lordon said they would be open indefinitely in Miramichi.

Gogan said Petitcodiac councillors were door-knocking in rural areas of the village of roughly 1,400 people to check on those without power or phone connections.

Gogan said he was shown photos from across the region that showed rows of snapped poles in roadways.

“There’s telephone poles snapped off and a number of poles out of commission altogether. And we’re not talking about one or two poles — we’re talking huge numbers in some areas,” said Gogan just after leaving a warming centre at the Maritime Motorsports Hall of Fame.

Premier Brian Gallant toured communities impacted by the storm Thursday, saying he was inspired by the generosity of residents and the sense of community.

“I saw people open up their homes to their neighbours with no power in Miramichi, firefighters do door-to-door in Rogersville to make sure people are OK, and volunteers in Tracadie help those who are looking for a place to warm up,” said Gallant in a statement.

The Canadian Press