A homeowner in Winnipeg was left panicked after Wednesday night’s storm sent a large tree crashing into his home. “That tree came right through our living room,” said Gunnar Friedrich outside his Charleswood home, partially hidden under a large Poplar tree that had fallen on top of it. Friedrich said he was standing in his hallway Wednesday night when he heard what sounded like a branch snap, then a tree came crashing through his roof. “It was honestly just panic at that point. I wasn’t sure what to do,” he said, adding he called 911 and the fire department arrived shortly after. He said he doesn’t know what happens next, as there is currently a tree branch sticking out of his living room ceiling. “I just want to get the tree off my house ideally,” he said. Thousands without power: Hydro This comes as the clean-up from Wednesday night’s storm continues across southern Manitoba. As of Thursday morning, thousands of people were left without power. In a news release Thursday afternoon, Manitoba Hydro said 28,000 customers have been impacted by more than 500 outages across the province, with the majority of customers in the Winnipeg area. “High winds, heavy rain and lightning brought down trees, poles and power lines,” Hydro said in a news release. Crews are assessing damage and beginning repairs, the Crown corporation noted, but specified estimated repair times are not available yet due to the number of outages being assessed. Hydro said crews are putting their focus into the repairs that will restore power to the largest number of people at once. If people come across downed power lines, they are told to stay at least 10 metres away and immediately call 911. “Manitoba Hydro is assigning additional crews to outage restoration work including construction crews and contractors diverted from ongoing projects. We are making every effort to safely restore power as quickly as possible.” Manitoba Hydro’s full power outage map can be viewed online. With files from CTV’s Joseph Bernacki
