Class action lawsuit filed against Hydro-Québec after Montreal west-end power outage
Posted January 30, 2026 2:25 pm.
Last Updated January 30, 2026 5:56 pm.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Hydro-Québec following a major power outage that left thousands of residents in Montreal’s west end without electricity for days during extreme cold.
The outage, caused by a failure at the aging Hampstead substation, knocked out power to large parts of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Côte-Saint-Luc and Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce beginning the morning of Jan. 24, when temperatures plunged to as low as –26 Celsius. For some residents, service disruptions lasted up to three days, with intermittent outages continuing even longer.
The deaths of two seniors that occurred during the outage are now under investigation by Quebec’s Coroner’s Office.
Residents describe extensive damage
Among those affected is Notre-Dame-de-Grâce resident Jane Critchlow and her husband, Stan, who were without electricity and running water for 62 hours following a separate power outage that began Thursday, Jan. 22.
“I believe at some point they have to be accountable for actions like this,” Critchlow said.
During that outage, the couple dealt with burst pipes that caused flooding in their basement, extensive water damage in their garage, and damage to ceilings and personal belongings.
In video recorded inside the home, water can be seen dripping steadily from the ceiling. Critchlow described the damage in detail.
“We had a burst pipe running all the way along the garage ceiling, and so that spilled water everywhere again just like a river,” she said. “So now the plaster is coming off and we’ve got major water, extensive water damage in the garage.”
She says Hydro-Québec must take responsibility.
“The company, the corporation, Hydro-Québec has got to be held accountable for these types of incidences,” Critchlow said.
Legal action launched
On Wednesday, a Westmount-based law firm filed a class action lawsuit against the utility company on behalf of residents who say they suffered damages due to the outage.
According to the filing by Lex Group Inc. with Quebec Superior Court, the lawsuit alleges Hydro-Québec failed to meet its obligations and knowingly allowed aging infrastructure to remain in service despite signs of failure.
Attorney David Assor says his firm has already heard from numerous residents affected by the outage.
“A lot of people are signing up on my website giving me the details of their damages,” Assor said. “Some of them had spoiled food that they had to throw out in the refrigerator or freezer. Others had, like I said, hotel costs, other types of costs.”
He added that the consequences extended beyond financial losses.
“Some people lost their pets. There have been at least two deaths that we know of that have occurred during, people who were staying in their home while this was going on,” Assor said.
On Jan. 24, roughly 15,000 customers in Côte-Saint-Luc, Côte-des-Neiges and N-D-G lost power as temperatures dropped to –25 C. About 2,000 customers remained without electricity until Monday, with some outages continuing into Tuesday.
Hoping to be included
Critchlow and her husband say they hope to be included in the class action lawsuit, citing the significant costs they are now facing.
“Just the cost of the plumber alone is going to be through the roof,” she said. “The repairs that are going to be needed, we’re going to need a cleaning company, dryers, drywall redone, possibly pipes fixed, who knows what this is going to cost.”
She says the responsibility should not fall solely on homeowners and insurers.
“It cannot simply be passed along to other people and other companies like insurance companies and us who ultimately pay the price for that,” Critchlow said.
Hydro-Québec response
In a written statement to CityNews, Hydro-Québec said it is reviewing the legal filing and would not comment further on the matter. The utility reiterated that customers must contact their insurer to seek compensation for property damage related to power outages.
“We maintained constant communication with the communities affected by the outage,” said Hydro-Québec spokesperson Pascal Poinlane.
Poinlane said the company took several steps, including informing municipal emergency services early Saturday afternoon shortly after the outage began, implementing automated calls to contact customers multiple times, conducting door-to-door outreach in the neighbourhood, publishing targeted social media messages, keeping municipal and borough administrations and elected officials informed, and maintaining a sustained media presence.
