Deli owner in Stittsville faces $8,000 bill after four-day power outage

Ivan Saric was home on Canada Day when his walk-in freezers started warming up. The temperature app showed -18°C instead of the usual -28°C.

It was the beginning of four days without power at Ivan's Meat and Deli on Stittsville Main Street. While his household electricity came back by Wednesday evening, his three-phase heavy-duty meter — the one powering his industrial meat grinders, saws, and walk-in refrigerators — stayed dark until around 9 p.m. Saturday. Hydro Ottawa rescheduled his appointment at least three times.

"I was there at 3," Saric said of a promised 4 a.m. Thursday visit. The workers never showed.

To keep the meat from spoiling, Saric rented a mobile generator using 60,000 kilowatts. It burned through $1,000 worth of diesel a day. By Saturday, he's estimating the total cost — generator rental plus lost business during peak summer season — will reach up to $8,000.

"This outage will set myself and my family back financially," he said. "I just closed four days in the best time for the business when we make money now for our slow days in January and February."

Saric's parents opened the shop in 1987. He's been running it since 2005. He's considering an insurance claim but worries about the cost implications.

Meanwhile, five Ottawa MPPs and four city councillors signed an open letter calling on Ontario to "immediately" deploy financial assistance for those affected by the Canada Day flooding and subsequent power outages.