Power outages polka dotting B.C. Saturday, as waves of storms pound the province, forcing crews to play whack-a-mole with downed lines.

“You’re fixing one area, only to have to move over to another area quickly,” said Witney Deane, spokesperson for BC Hydro.

Deane says at its peak, the weather had 80,000 homes and businesses in the dark, but the cumulative total of affected customers is much higher and it’s only going to climb, with multiple storms still on the horizon throughout the week.

“Bringing heavy rains, and some of those winds may have more intense gusts than we had on Friday, so we’re preparing for that as well.”

And that’s saying something – given that winds were reaching the 90s around Metro Vancouver, and north of 100 km/hr on the Island. Deane says that’s a bad recipe given the drought-like conditions we saw for much for the summer and fall.

“That weakens the tree systems, the tree root systems. Trees may be standing, but they aren’t necessarily healthy, and then they’re more susceptible to falling on our power lines and causing those power outages.”

The weather also prompted BC Ferries to cancel sailings across the Georgia Strait Saturday evening. The service says more cancellations are possible on Sunday – adding that while they always want to keep people moving, safety has to come first.

BC Hydro is encouraging people to prepare a 72-hour emergency kit – while those travelling with BC Ferries are being encouraged to keep a close eye on the status of their sailings.