A second person lost his life following the freezing rains, Premier François Legault announced during a press briefing on Friday afternoon. The man from Saint-Eustache died after using a barbecue in his residence.
Another man also died while cutting branches on his land in Les Coteaux on Thursday. He was 60 years old.
“We say to also pay attention to generators,” asked the Prime Minister while in Les Coteaux to meet with authorities from the MRC Vaudreuil-Soulanges, an area west of Montreal heavily affected by the ice storm. “The generators have to be some distance from the house because it emits gas. You have to be careful with the devices that you enter or that are close to the house. »
Urgences-Santé has indeed reported about sixty carbon monoxide poisonings in the last 48 hours.
François Legault recalled that 1.1 million residences were without electricity at the height of the ice storm. By Friday afternoon, 50% of the outages had been repaired and 80% were on track by the end of the day and 95% by Saturday evening. Electricity should be restored everywhere by Sunday or Monday.
The wind during the day, however, complicated the work of Hydro-Québec. “The winds caused additional outages. It helped in some cases to get rid of the ice, but it also caused branches to fall,” explained Mr. Legault.
Crews from across the province converged on Montreal and surrounding areas to help Hydro-Quebec linemen. However, the Prime Minister did not need to call on resources from Ontario, New Brunswick or the northeastern United States.
Mr. Legault also called on Quebecers to help each other, to welcome those who are without electricity or to offer them meals and hot drinks.
