The lights go out, and when they come back on the radio won't stop playing, the dishwasher lights are blinking madly and the computer no longer works.
Though it sounds like a scene from a horror movie, it is actually the reality a Burnaby couple faced just before Halloween.
Lui Garcea arrived at his Brentwood home on Oct. 29 after his wife let him know about the appliance problem, and he found a new power pole nearby with a new wire connected to his house.
"I got home and I tried to restart our computer, and no power would be running to it," he said. "We had this old style vintage radio that would not shut off ... it was like it was possessed."
Garcea called B.C. Hydro but was told no work had been done nearby.
"They really made me feel like I didn't know what I was talking about, 'cause they said, 'there wasn't any power outage, there wasn't even any work supposed to be taking place in your area,'" he said, adding customer service sent his information to the claims department but was told he could not speak with anyone in the department.
Afterwards, Garcea said he received a form letter stating BC. Hydro was not liable for damage caused by its employees or third-party contractors.
"B.C. Hydro shall not be liable for any loss, injury or damage caused by or arising out of any such suspension of service," the letter states, adding, "It is a condition of service that any loss or damages, direct or indirect, which the customer may suffer by reason of any defect in the service to be provided under the electric tariff or an interruption or failure to provide service, whether or not caused by negligence, shall not be recoverable from such other utilities..."
Garcea said he not aware of the conditions beforehand.
"I was under the impression they would have some sort of insurance on their end for third party contractors or themselves doing work in their areas," he said. "Even if they had just advised us that this was taking place, we probably would've powered down just to be safe."
Garcea said he wasn't notified in advance about the work. He added he isn't aware of any damage sustained by other nearby residents, but said neighbours did mention coming home to blinking clocks due to the outage.
He would like B.C. Hydro to compensate him for the damage, since he has been a good customer over the years, and said he estimates it at "$1,000 at most."
B.C. Hydro spokesperson Mora Scott confirmed a power pole was replaced in the area on Oct. 29.
"In this case, the work involved a power interruption which is basically similar to unplugging and plugging in an appliance," she said. "This kind of outage doesn't generate any voltage on its own, it's pretty much the same thing that would happen if the power goes out during a windstorm."
Garcea has a smart meter, which has additional voltage protection, she added.
Because of this, B.C. Hydro doesn't believe there was a voltage issue, particularly since there were no other complaints, she said.
While Scott could not pinpoint the cause of the damage, since B.C. Hydro had not visited the home, she said a bad fuse or bad wiring could have caused it.
Customers can safeguard equipment by limiting the number of devices plugged into a single outlet, Scott said, use three-prong plugs when possible, and ensure wiring is grounded, with a certified electrician checking on it periodically.
As far as the way Garcea was treated by customer service staff, Scott said it was unfortunate he felt that was unsatisfactory.
"If the customer didn't get the level of service that he expected in this case, we definitely regret that," she said. "It is always our goal to try to answer the customer's questions and address their concerns the best we can."
While Scott was not able to confirm whether or not residents in the area were notified before the work took place, she said B.C. Hydro does have a policy to provide notification for planned outages, either by letter, by phone, or sometimes at the door on the day the work is done.
