87-year-old Sheila Padmore of Montreal died of hypothermia after spending nearly 36 hours without power in her apartment during a bitter January cold snap, according to a Quebec coroner's report released on Sept. 29. The case underscores how dangerous prolonged outages can become during extreme weather, especially for older adults without backup heat.
Here's what to know
During a police wellness check after 9 p.m. on Jan. 25, Padmore was found on the floor of her apartment, CBC News reported. Coroner Marie-Claude Boutin determined that she died of hypothermia after the prolonged outage cut heat to her home while outside temperatures ranged from 14°F (-10 C) to -4°F (-20 C).
By the time paramedics assessed her, they noted labored breathing and weak radial pulses; during the ambulance trip to Royal Victoria Hospital, she lost consciousness and went into cardiorespiratory arrest. Police had initially found her confused, with extremely cold hands.
Efforts to rewarm and resuscitate Padmore were unsuccessful, and she was pronounced dead at about 3 a.m. on Jan. 26. At the hospital, her temperature was recorded at 76.1°F (24.5 C), indicating profound hypothermia.
More background
At the peak of the blackout, more than 20,000 customers in Montreal, Montreal West, and Côte Saint-Luc were affected, and some remained without electricity for three days. CBC News reported that the outage began around 10 a.m. on Jan. 24 after equipment failed at Hydro-Québec's Hampstead substation in Côte Saint-Luc, which the utility had been planning to replace since at least 2018.
During the outage, about 50 affected customers used a warming center in Côte-des-Neiges, and some stayed overnight.
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A 66-year-old woman was also found dead in her Montreal West home on Jan. 25, but a coroner's investigation had not determined whether the outage or the cold played a role.
What can be done?
CBC News reported that a class-action lawsuit filed by Montreal law firm Lex Group Inc. argues Hydro-Québec took too long to restore power during dangerous weather. The coroner's report made no formal recommendations, though it said the city had put measures in place to protect the public.
The report concluded that Padmore's death was the result of "profound hypothermia following prolonged exposure to cold in a home deprived of heating." Hydro-Québec spokesperson Audrey St-Pierre said the utility had "deployed all available measures to restore service as quickly as possible, while working closely with municipal authorities responsible for civil security."
Where can I learn more?
These stories examine how power outages and extreme temperatures can quickly become dangerous for people at home.
• In Alberta, a misleading electrical grid claim drew scrutiny during a frigid power outage.
• After a heat-wave outage, an elderly woman living alone got a portable transformer.
• As outages worsen, homeowners turned to backup generators and battery systems from Generac.
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