Strong winds, downed trees close several Vancouver Island highways

Officials advised drivers not to travel on Vancouver Island highways Wednesday morning after a bomb cyclone weather event toppled trees and powerlines across roadways.

“Please avoid all highway travel and use extreme caution. Stay clear of any downed power lines,” a notice from DriveBC posted Tuesday night reads, which cautioned people to avoid driving into Wednesday morning.

Wind gusts exceeded 100 km/h in many parts of the island Tuesday night and the windy conditions are forecast to continue.

A roughly 40-kilometre stretch of Highway 4 between Coombs and Port Alberni closed just before 6 p.m. Tuesday, and re-opened to single-lane, alternating traffic around noon Wednesday.

The Port Alberni RCMP, in a social media post, said the closure was due to "unsafe conditions" and that the detachment had already been dispatched to "multiple" crashes due to the treacherous mix of fierce gusts and downed trees.

Before the highway was closed, the Port Alberni Fire Department said it had been called for a report of a “tree that has fallen on a semi-truck.”

Highway closures that remain in effect Wednesday include:

• Highway 14 from Port Renfrew to west of Sooke
• Highway 28 between Campbell River and Gold River
• Highway 19 from Port McNeill to Sayward Road
• All of Highway 30

The storm knocked out power for about 270,000 BC Hydro customers, the vast majority of whom live on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands.

“As soon as its safe to do so, maintenance contractors will begin clearing debris, and BC Hydro is prioritizing repairs to the many power outages across the island,” the DriveBC alert reads.

BC Ferries cancelled many of its sailings Wednesday morning.