![\"A](\"https:\/\/blogs.northcountrypublicradio.org\/allin\/files\/2018\/01\/DSCN3957.jpg\")
<\/a>A power line, completely destroyed by ice, near Greely, Ontario, south of Ottawa. Photo from “To The Rescue: A Commemorative Magazine Dedicated to All Those Who Battled the Darkness and Won.” Ontario Hydro, 1998.<\/p><\/div>\n
The power line workers<\/h3>\n
My Dad, Grant Morgan, was one of the 800 employees of Ontario Hydro and other power utilities who were dispatched to eastern Ontario to rebuild power lines and return service to customers. Whenever he did sleep, it was at a motel in Morrisburg that didn\u2019t have electricity most of the time. Others slept on cots in community centers or tents. Dad sounded exhausted and overwhelmed whenever he called home. He worked from the Ontario Hydro facility in Winchester, but supervised crews all over the region. Aultsville Road, Ingleside, Long Sault, Limoges, Casselman, Finch, and Longueil Transformer Station are just some of the places his crews were in. The utility workers also had support from 500 army personnel who assisted. Combat engineers removed tree branches off roofs and used excavators to assist utility crews. Ontario Hydro\u2019s customer call center received 243,000 telephone calls. Equipment and supplies were requisitioned from all over North America. The community appreciation was amazing. Dad remembers a town council member organizing a roast beef dinner for utility workers. Residents of homes would run outside to thank line workers who had just reconnected their power.\u00a0 Many homes and businesses were without it for two weeks.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Ontario utility crews rebuilding a line destroyed by the ice storm. Photo from “To The Rescue: A Commemorative Magazine Dedicated to All Those Who Battled the Darkness and Won.” Ontario Hydro, 1998.<\/p><\/div>\n
The broadcasters<\/h3>\n
In Kingston, Tony Orr was managing the news department for radio stations owned by the CHUM chain when the storm first hit there on January 7. 1380 CKLC-AM, was the only station still on the air\u2014the transmitters for every other station had been knocked out by the ice. On Wolfe Island, every utility pole was broken, but the CKLC transmitter tower was still standing, and the mostly underground \/ underwater telephone line connecting it with the studio in Kingston was still in service. The transmitter generator had also been recently refueled as well. Orr went to work at 2 am the next morning. The power was out at his house. He stopped to pick up colleague Rick Choma who didn\u2019t want to go because there was a tree and power line down across his front sidewalk. Orr convinced Choma to jump over the tree and line and they went downtown to their dark, third-floor studio where two telephones worked, and backup power kept two computers running. The power was restored at the station just before 6:00 am and they were able to deliver a newscast at the top of the hour. 70% of Kingston had no electricity and Mayor Gary Bennett declared a state of emergency.<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI worked with an exceptional staff that worked extended shifts with no breaks for two weeks,\u201d said Orr, whose own home had no electricity for five days. He moved his wife, daughter, and dog to a Best Western hotel that still had power. Orr said he would sleep for two or three hours before going back to the station.\u00a0 The station manager gave him full control of programming for as long as was needed. CKLC shifted from extended coverage to occasional special reports so listeners could conserve the batteries in their portable radios. Station staff answered hundreds of telephone calls from residents who wanted to know where they could get fuel, or offer their help as volunteers. Rather than rely on the city\u2019s command center, Orr and his staff decided to gather the information they thought listeners specifically needed to survive the crisis. Jim Keech, the President of the city-owned electrical utility went on air and updated listeners about efforts to restore power, and a spokesperson from Ontario Hydro gave updates on restoration efforts in areas outside the city. Power was fully restored to Kingston 10 days after the storm hit, but CKLC kept doing extended newscasts for another 11 days to keep rural residents who still did not have electricity, informed.<\/p>\n