Hamilton ice storm leaves thousands in the cold Monday morning
'Crews are currently working as quickly as possible' to restore service: Horizon Utilities

Latest
- All Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board buildings, including daycare facilities, closed Monday
- About 3,000 Hamilton households, businesses without power Monday morning
- 'Widespread power outages' to last up to 72 hours in some areas, Horizon says
- 'Our biggest concern right now is the safety of our residents,' Mayor Bratina says in statement
- Warming Centres: Dundas Lions Memorial Community, Stoney Creek Rec, Huntington Park Rec Centre
Community warming centres
The city has opened a series of community centres to residents who have lost power. City staff will be present at these locations:
- North Wentworth Arena — 27 Hwy. 5, Flamborough
- Dundas Lions Memorial Community Centre — 10 Market St. S, Dundas (HSR bus route #5 West)
- Stoney Creek Recreation Centre — 45 King St. W, Stoney Creek (HSR bus route #5 East)
- Huntington Park Recreation Centre — 87 Brentwood Dr., Hamilton (HSR bus route #22)
For more information, go to the city's winter storm information page.
Thousands of Hamilton residents spent the night in the dark, after a wild winter ice storm toppled tree branches and downed power lines across the city.
Sunday afternoon, Horizon Utilities announced that "widespread power outages" in Hamilton could last up to 72 hours, into Christmas Day.
"The power outages are the result of ice build-up that is bringing down trees and power lines," the company said in a 2:30 p.m. written statement. "Horizon crews are currently working as quickly as possible to restore power to approximately customers without power in Hamilton and St. Catharines."
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About 3,000 Horizon Utilities customers are without power Monday morning as are about 2,000 Hydro One customers, which serves some of the city's rural and suburban areas.
Because of tree branches falling on hydro infrastructure, new outages popped up on Sunday afternoon as crews worked to fix existing ones, said company spokesperson Marylena Stea.
She said she wasn't able to give a firm estimate on when normal service would resume.
'Our biggest concern right now is the safety of our residents as it relates to power outages, fallen wires and tree limbs and driving conditions.'—Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina
"We are hoping to have the bulk of people restored today," Stea said. "There will be people without who will go without power overnight. As for how many, at this point it’s tough to say."
Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina sent out a statement on Sunday evening in the wake of the ice storm.
"An army of city, hydro, police, fire and emergency workers are on duty responding to the needs of our people and dealing with dangerous situations such as fallen wires, tree limbs, icy roads, etc.," he said.
"Every available staff person has been assigned to required duties or is on standby...Our biggest concern right now is the safety of our residents as it relates to power outages, fallen wires and tree limbs and driving conditions."
In response to the power outages, the city has opened four community warming centres for people who have lost electricity.
Busy night for downtown hotels
With their homes without power, many Hamiltonians were forced to decide on how to adapt to the circumstances.
Some chose to book a hotel room in the city’s downtown — which, for much of the day, experienced relatively few and relatively short lapses in hydro service.
“We’ve actually had tons of calls for people in the city, especially from the Hamilton Mountain, where a lot of the outages have taken place,” said Carla Visocchi, a front agent at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
The late-weekend rush, she added, is out of the ordinary.
“It’s weird for a Sunday night for it to be quiet, and then all the sudden get really busy,” Visocchi said.
Staybridge Suites, at Caroline South and George streets, saw a “high, high amount” of last-minute bookings from residents of other parts of the city, a hotel representative told CBC Hamilton.
Many more Hamiltonians hunkered down in their electricity-less homes, taking measures to stay warm overnight, or left home to stay with friends or relatives.
I’m very concerned about my residents, especially those who may not have the money to go out to a restaurant to get warm.—Coun. Judi Partridge, Ward 15
Councillor Judi Partridge, whose ward encompasses both rural and suburban parts of Waterdown and Flamborough, said some of her constituents are firing up wood stoves or gas fireplaces in efforts to keep their dwellings warms.
However, she expressed concerns about constituents — particularly seniors, children and mothers with babies — who don't have the wherewithal to purchase needed supplies or to seek shelter elsewhere.