STORY CONTINUES BELOW THESE SALTWIRE VIDEOS

As Nova Scotia Power, out-of-province line crews and  private contractors continue to work on restoring power to Nova Scotians, they are being slightly slowed at times by thefts from their trucks and work sites.

NSP spokesperson Jacqueline Foster said there have been about half a dozen thefts in the last few days alone across the province.

“While this hasn’t impacted restoration efforts to date, we take this very seriously and want to address it early, so it doesn’t become an issue as we continue to restore power to our customers.”

She said a tree trimming truck was stolen over the weekend, but has since been found with nothing missing from it.

Equipment has been stolen out of some trucks overnight while crews are sleeping, and more has been taken from work sites, including copper wire from a hotel parking lot in Amherst and from work sites in Sydney and Glace Bay.  In Lower Sackville, Stihl brand chainsaws, as well as harnesses and cold weather and rain gear were also stolen from a truck parked at overnight accommodations.

“We encourage anyone who may witness this activity, or sees someone trying to sell this gear, to call police,” Foster said.

One person has already been arrested in connection with the thefts. Amherst police said in a release that within an hour of being called Monday morning about the theft in their town they had arrested a suspect with the help of information supplied by the public.

Wayne Douglas Porter, 55, of Amherst has been charged with possession of stolen property. Following his arrest, officers searched an Amherst residence and found two full rolls of copper wire, eight partial rolls of copper wire, a small amount of silver wire and various tools.

Police say the investigation in ongoing and additional charges are pending.

Some of the seized items were returned to Nova Scotia Power immediately so the company can continue using it to reconnect people who are without power, police said.

As of 2 p.m. Tuesday, 97 per cent of customers who lost power had the lights back on, but there were still just under 12,000 who have yet to be reconnected as crews struggled to deal with downed trees, power poles and lines. There are 1,500 workers from multiple jurisdictions working to reconnect customers, with most in the hardest hit areas.

In Cape Breton, some of the remaining customers have seen their times pushed ahead to Thursday or Friday, while customers in Pictou, Colchester, and Cumberland counties have seen times move into the weekend. Those customers who are now seeing restoration times of Sunday will be receiving a phone call from NSP.

“We understand losing power impacts every part of your life,” Lia MacDonald, who is heading up the northeast emergency operations centre, said in a release. She said the company knows that Thanksgiving weekend is typically filled with family gatherings, and,  “I want customers to know we are doing everything we can to get your power back safely and as soon as possible.”

The company said most of the remaining outages in the province are single outages, which means they involve one customer. Those take at least one crew to restore power, although in many cases it takes several crews and several hours.

The company said the repairs left to look after are complex, with crews needing to rebuild entire sections of lines and poles, areas still needing to be cleared of debris and trees, and broken poles, transformers and fuses that need to be replaced.

There are also more than 2,300 broken meter masts, which requires the homeowner to have a certified electrician make repairs before power can be restored.

It has been our privilege to have the trust and support of our East Coast communities for the last 200 years. Our SaltWire team is always watching out for the place we call home. Our 100 journalists strive to inform and improve our East Coast communities by delivering impartial, high-impact, local journalism that provokes thought and action. Please consider joining us in this mission by becoming a member of the SaltWire Network and helping to make our communities better.

Click here for information on becoming a member

Click here to download the SaltWire app

Ensure local journalism stays in your community by purchasing a membership today.

The news and opinions you’ll love for only $20/year.

Start your Membership Now

Your home for the news shaping Canada's East Coast