Commuters hoping to get a look at Sutton Pass between Port Alberni and the Tofino-Ucluelet region are out of luck as a lightning strike has destroyed a radio repeater site that the highway webcam relies on, according to B.C.’s Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.
Looks like our #BCHwy4 #SuttonPass cam will be down longer than expected.
Crews got up to the summit during a break in the weather this weekend and found the repeater site has sustained a direct hit from a lightning strike. See it before and after below. #PortAlberni #Tofino pic.twitter.com/nonKhdBu6y— BC Transportation (@TranBC) November 30, 2020
“One of our radio repeater sites was recently struck by lightning. Crews helicoptered up to the summit of Porter Mountain during a break in the weather this weekend, to service the equipment. They found the repeater site has sustained a direct hit from lightning,” the Ministry announced in a Facebook post Monday afternoon.
“Unfortunately, this means our webcam at Sutton Pass on Hwy 4, will be down longer than expected. Sutton Pass has no available cell coverage or landline connectivity, so we rely on a radio unit to connect the cam with this mountain top radio repeater site. Under normal circumstances, the radio repeater relays the signal over to another repeater site, that has cell coverage and a cell modem, which sends the image to our servers via the cell signal.”
The Westerly News has reached out to the ministry for comment and will update this story as soon as new information comes in.
andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter
READ MORE: Tofino, Ucluelet and Port Alberni call for emergency phones on Hwy. 4 after crash
READ MORE: Province says Wi-Fi “not feasible” for commuters stuck in Hwy. 4 construction closures
READ MORE: Tofino chamber says Hwy. 4 closure schedule hurting businesses and residents