Environment Canada is calling for periods of rain and potentially damaging winds of up to 80 km per hour, with gusts up to 100 kilometres per hour in Victoria.
Winds are not expected to die down until the early morning hours of Monday.
As of 4 p.m. Sunday, almost 500 homes in the James Bay area, 200 along Ross Bay Rd, near Clover Point Park and 1,300 in Fairfield are without power. B.C. Hydro crews are working on the problem and estimate power should be back on by 6 p.m. About 100 homes in Oak Bay had power restored earlier in the day. Power has also been restored to most Saanich homes, except for an area that stretches from Mount Doug Park to the University of Victoria and includes about 2,000 homes, which are still without power but are expected to be back online Sunday by 6 p.m. Other small pockets of outages, including approximately 100 homes in Esquimalt are also expected to have power by 6 p.m.
Businesses, residents, and contractors on building sites should secure materials that could become airborne such as garbage cans, retractable canopies, ladders, hoardings, building materials, patio furniture, and awnings.
Residents should be prepared and have flashlights, blankets, a portable radio and spare batteries on hand in case of a power outage, and should avoid parking vehicles under trees or hydro wires if possible.
For information on what to include in an emergency kit, go to www.PrepareVictoria.ca
To report a power outage, call B.C. Hydro at 1-888-769-3766. To report a power line down, call 911.