Power has been restored to thousands of homes and businesses in Hamilton following a widespread outage Monday morning.

At its peak, more than 40,000 people were without power, according to Alectra Utilities, which said the issue was caused by a supply problem from Hydro One.

Power wasn't expected to be restored until 1 p.m,, but in an update to Twitter just after noon Hydro One said crews had made the necessary repairs.

The outage led to the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board (HWCDSB) asking parents and guardians to pick up students from St. Joseph Catholic Elementary School, Canadian Martyrs Catholic Elementary School and St. Mary Catholic Secondary School.

Following news the power was back on, HWCDSB spokesperson Marnie Jadon said most of the children had been picked up.

"For those who are at the school, staff are on site and they can continue with their learning," she said.

With students learning online during the COVID-19 pandemic, local post-secondary institutions also took notice.

"There is a major power outage in a large area of Hamilton, affecting many students and professors," tweeted Mohawk College. "Your online lessons may be disrupted – don't panic if you are unable to proceed with your classes this morning."

"Happy Monday, everyone," added McMaster University in a tweet of its own.