About 7,500 people were still waiting for their electricity to return in central and northern British Columbia early Sunday evening, a day after a snowstorm downed power lines.
B.C. Hydro customers in the communities of Vanderhoof, Smithers, Hazelton, Takla Landing and Houston were without electricity.
B.C. Hydro's website said it hoped to restore service to about half the customers by 6 p.m. PT, and the rest by midnight.
The early season snowstorm that swept through the region left about 15,000 people without power.
About a metre of heavy, wet snow fell in some areas. Up to 50 centimetres of snow was reported in the Skeena and Bulkley valley regions.
Most highways in the region had compacted snow with slippery sections. A rockslide on Saturday closed Highway 20 in both directions between Bella Coola and Anahim Lake.
In the village of Burns Lake and surrounding communities, officials had asked people to conserve water and fuel after the freak storm.
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