The raccoon caused a major power outage on February 1, leaving 7,000 customers in downtown Toronto without power for two hours.
Hydro One said a raccoon got stuck in equipment at the downtown station, knocking out parts of the city. It is not known what happened to the raccoon in this incident.
In a statement on social media X, Toronto Hydro said, “We are working to restore power to customers from St. Clair Avenue West to Gerrard Street West and from Avenue Road to Don Valley Parkway.” We are working closely with Hydro One to restore power supply and resolve the issue as quickly and safely as possible. Thank you for your patience during this time.
According to Toronto Hydro’s outage map, the power outage started around 7:40 a.m. and power was fully restored about three hours later around 10:30 a.m.
A spokesperson for Toronto Fire Services said seven elevator rescue calls were made, including at Bloor, College and Ontario streets. If a building is very large, there is a backup power system. But these are small buildings and backup electricity did not work there.
Some Torontonians posted on X to report power outages. They post pictures and videos of how dark the city really is at night. The power outage also disrupted TTC subway service on Line One. Then it returns to normal.
