The worst windstorm to hit southwest B.C. in 20 years continues inflicting misery on many residents.

Tens of thousands are still without power on Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and the Lower Mainland following the crashing winds on Thursday (December 21).

Tomorrow (Christmas Eve) at noon, B.C. Hydro expects there still be be pockets of outages in many communities, including Delta, Surrey, White Rock, Maple Ridge, and Mission on the Lower Mainland.

Power will remain out in Lake Cowichan, Shawnigan Lake, and Parker Island.

It will be "mainly out" on Gabriola and Mudge islands, with pockets of outages on Vancouver Island as well as on Galiano, Mayne, Salt Spring, and Pender islands.

This weekend, more than 800 field workers are conducting repairs to the system, according to the Crown-owned utility.

"I know any power outage is an inconvenience and can present challenges—and even more so at this time of year. On behalf of B.C. Hydro, I would like to thank our customers for their continued patience,”  B.C. Hydro president and CEO Chris O’Riley said in a news release. “We are doing everything we can to get all of our customers back on and our crews will work around-the-clock until we have every last customer connected.”