Frustration with Nova Scotia Power surges after rate increases, weekend outages
Cape Breton Regional Municipal councillor Cyril MacDonald's weekend was one filled with angry phone calls from residents without power.
It's a problem he says is happening too frequently and his frustration is with Nova Scotia Power.
“It's time for Nova Scotia Power to start investing in their infrastructure,” said MacDonald.
MacDonald feels with a 14 per cent increase now granted to NSP and millions of dollars in profits annually, residents shouldn't be paying out hundreds of dollars to operate a generator to keep the lights on.
“They're accountable to nobody and I think our provincial government needs to take a stance on this,” said MacDonald.
Joella Foulds lives in Boularderie Island. She says her power kept going on and off every few minutes on Saturday.
“I just feel that they're not treating the whole problem of outages as seriously as they should be,” said Foulds.
Foulds says it was difficult to try and get answers from NSP as to what was going on.
“We're not getting reliable service. Everybody out here now has to have a generator because you can't count on Nova Scotia Power if the wind goes up at all,” she said.
To make matters worse, Foulds says the frequent outages fried her refrigerator.
“We're waiting for the advice of a repair-person to see whether it's ever going to be useable or whether it has to be replaced,” she added.
Lia MacDonald, VP of Customer Experience for the utility, said a device used on the lines designed to protect equipment where there is high electricity use wasn’t functioning properly.
According to Nova Scotia Power, 2022 was a high storm year and the reason behind most of the outages. MacDonald says the company is always looking to improve their productive reliability plan.
“We invest hundreds of millions of dollars every year. Tens of millions on tree-clearing in and of itself, and we're always looking at how that can be done better,” she said.
Meanwhile, Cyril MacDonald said power outages are costing the municipality more because of the need to open comfort centres, and in the end, that cost will be handed down to the taxpayers if the problem persists.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
There's actually no such thing as vegetables. Here's why you should eat them anyway
The rumours are true: Vegetables aren't real — that is, in botany, anyway. While the term fruit is recognized botanically as anything that contains a seed or seeds, vegetable is actually a broad umbrella term.
BREAKING Israeli forces seize Rafah border crossing in Gaza, putting ceasefire talks on knife's edge
Israeli tanks seized control of Gaza’s vital Rafah border crossing on Tuesday as Israel brushed off urgent warnings from close allies and moved into the southern city even as ceasefire negotiations with Hamas remained on a knife’s edge.
The Met Gala was in full bloom with Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Mindy Kaling among the standout stars
The Met Gala and its fashionista A-listers on Monday included Jennifer Lopez, Zendaya and a parade of others in a swirl of flora and fauna looks on a green-tinged carpet lined by live foliage.
Canadian cadets rock mullets and place second at U.S. military competition
Sporting mullets, Canadian Armed Forces officer cadets placed second in an annual military skills competition in the U.S.
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
Noelia Voigt resigns as Miss USA, citing her mental health
Noelia Voigt, who was crowned Miss USA in November 2023, has announced she is resigning from her role, saying the decision is in the best interest of her mental health.
Putin begins his fifth term as president, more in control of Russia than ever
Vladimir Putin began his fifth term Tuesday as Russian leader at a glittering Kremlin inauguration, setting out on another six years in office after destroying his political opponents, launching a devastating war in Ukraine and concentrating all power in his hands.
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
Mediterranean staple may lower your risk of death from dementia, study finds
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.