UPDATED: 6:20 p.m.
Fortis BC crews expect power to be restored at 7 p.m.
Crews continue to work in #Kelowna and we anticipate power will be restored at approx 7pm. We appreciate your patience and understanding.
— FortisBC (@FortisBC) June 21, 2017
UPDATE: 4:52 p.m.
According to Fortis BC spokesperson Michael Allison, crews have yet to determine when power will be restored to 1,600 homes in the Lower Mission.
Originally, 1,600 customers lost power when a large tree fell, due to high winds, on powerlines. Fortis BC had to cut power to an additional 2,000 customers upon arriving at the scene, which have since been restored.
To stay updated, follow Fortis BC on Twitter.
ORIGINAL:
Thousands of people are without power this afternoon in the Lower Mission area of Kelowna after a tree fell onto a power line about 3 p.m. this afternoon.
According to Fortis BC, more than 3,000 customers are affected by the outage. The company initially said on its Twitter feed that the power was expected to be resorted by about 6 p.m. but later said the estimated time of restoration was still to be determined.
Thanks to everyone for patience while crews respond to big outage in Lower Mission #Kelowna. Extensive damage due to trees on the line.
— FortisBC (@FortisBC) June 20, 2017
Fortis crews along with firefighters from the Kelowna Fire Department have been on the scene, dealing with the downed power lines, but also reports of a grass fire in the area.
The Capital News has sent a reporter to the area and will update the story as the situation unfolds.
If you see news, email us at newstips@kelownacapnews.com.