Toronto Hydro customers are clearly at risk from a company without a solid infrastructure. It is not exactly confidence inspiring when a valve opened for no reason at all and couldn’t be shut off which then triggered a sprinkler system meant for fires or overheated electrical equipment which then resulted in over 250,000 left without power and heat. To make a bad situation even worse, all of this happened on one of the coldest days of the year.

This disaster in the Dufferin Street Transformer Station affected a widespread area - from Jane Street to Spadina Avenue and from St. Clair Avenue to Queen Street - for up to 24 hours. The reason that it took so long to restore power is that the water had to be pumped out of the station and then the equipment had to be dried before power could be restored. As of yet, no one at Toronto Hydro has a clue what triggered the opening of the valve and the ensuing calamity.

The entire city of Toronto felt the affect of the loss of power. The Bloor-Danforth subway line was shut down between the Jane and St. George Stations stranding thousands of commuters. Shuttle buses are hardly adequate for the volume and the Arctic-like temperatures did not make walking any length of time a viable alternative. Toronto Taxi drivers however had a banner day. Many schools were closed and driving in the area had to be attempted as a last resort as there were no traffic lights.

The question is what will Toronto Hydro do to ensure that there are system redundancies in place that can divert power from other stations should a similar situation arise? Toronto Hydro must shore up its failing systems. The city of Toronto must be able to rely on its power distribution system.