Essex County clean-up after the storm, downed trees and power outages

Essex resident Shelly Tull said she worried about her elderly neighbours the morning after an ice storm swept through the region causing long-lasting power outages.

She explained they had gone without electricity for over 12 hours.

“No heat. No hydro. No anything,” she said.

“All of our hallways are black and we don't have backup anything for lighting,” Tull said. “So everybody's stumbling in the dark in the hallways with their keys and stuff. And I know that there's a lot of elderly here that need to have oxygen and they haven't had any oxygen since seven o'clock last night.”

Resident Shelly Tull was worried about her elderly neighbours after the apartment building had been without power for more than 12 hours in Essex, Ont., on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)Other Essex residents said they had never seen an ice storm cause so much damage in town.

“Oh, terrible. Just terrible. Last night it was awful,” said Sue Holman. “All I heard all night, was ‘smash, smash!’”

While surveying the damage along Maple Row, resident Mike Samaritan said, “first time I've ever seen this in my entire life. I’m 54, so goes to show how the climate change is really affecting everybody.”

“It’s not too pretty,” exclaimed Jerry Marten. “It’s like it's a big storm I guess. But we're gonna get through this.”

Damage after ice storm in Essex, Ont., on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)Marten said he was fortunate enough to have a friend help make some roof repairs, after a tree limb fell on his home.

“Must have been too heavy or something,” Marten said. “Just getting patched up right now and hope for the best.”

“There is no area now in the Town of Essex that isn't impacted by the ice storm,” said Mayor Sherry Bondy.

“Crews now have been working, you know they work their day shifts so they've almost been working for 24 hours straight. They need to rest we need to make sure that our crews are safe and power will come back on but I'm asking residents stay safe and bunker down a little bit longer.”

Bondy continued, “Check in on your friends and family. Make sure your car is okay. Make sure that you're not under any tree branches because trees are still falling down so we still have to be on high alert.”

“There's still that snap crackle pop sound going on. The town of Essex staff, the public works department have closed a lot of roads, a lot of the small roads here in the municipality. Wires are down. You know we're asking people to make the assumption that even if the wires down the power is off, treat it like a live wire. Do not go close to it and just stay safe right now.” 

Damage after ice storm in Essex, Ont., on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

With all the downed trees and damage surveyed in Essex the town is informing residents about what to do and who to call. 

The Shaheen Room in the Essex Centre Sports Complex at 60 Fairview Avenue W. was supposed to be emergency centre, but the building also lost power.

Essex Town Hall, the Gesto office, and Harrow Arena are closed until further notice. The Essex Centre Sports Complex, Essex Recreation Centre, and Maedel Community Centre remain open at this time.

Who to call?

For hazard trees and branches, please contact 519-776-7336 and press '0' or contact the OPP non-emergency number at 1-888-310-1122.

To report an urgent problem that poses an immediate threat to public health or safety, please call 519-776-7336 or report it online at www.essex.ca/ReportAProblem

In case of an emergency, call 911.

Email access continues to be available at this time.

E.L.K Energy

E.L.K. Energy services Belle River, Comber, Cottam, Essex, Harrow and Kingsville.

“We are aware of multiple power outages in our service areas due to the storm. All crews have been dispatched to restore hydro as quick and safely as possible,” the company posted on their website.

E.L.K Energy is telling customers if they need to report an outage, then do so on Twitter.

Where to take downed branches in Essex County:

Downed branches can be dropped off at one of the Essex Windsor Solid Waste Authority drop off depots. Size restrictions apply. For further details, visit https://pulse.ly/nq8ozfft1o

- Branches/Stumps: (under 18" in diameter, less than 48" long) can be dropped off free of charge.

- Branches/Stumps: (over 18" in diameter, but less than 36" long) can be dropped off but will be charged as garbage.

Damage after ice storm in Essex, Ont., on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)E.L.K. Energy office in Essex, Ont., on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)