Since the storm left several Hydro-Québec customers without power, retailers have seen a notable increase in generator sales.
• Also read: Weather in Quebec: more rain and more power outages
A dealer interviewed by TVA Nouvelles said he had sold more than twenty generators, which equates to thousands of dollars in sales.
Gasoline generators between 3500 and 4000 W are the most sought after by customers.
However, the imposing 10000 W generators are becoming more and more popular.
“The world that asks me the most is the 10,000W because they want to be more autonomous when there are blackouts like the ones of the last week (…)” confirms Bernard Tremblay of BMR Achille Tremblay and Sons.
Robert Darveau, President of the Quebec Hardware and Building Materials Association, explains what customers need to know before buying a generator.
“The envelope [d’un générateur] is very important. Second, the guarantee, we can see that it still varies greatly from device to device. Third, there is the CSA logo [Canadian Standards Association]. There are products that are available on the market (but don’t have a logo),” he explained.
After more than a week in the dark, many citizens no longer want to go through the ordeal of the past few days and prefer to equip themselves accordingly.
“It will help me if one day I run out of electricity,” one man shouted.