A big blast of ice has left thousands of people without electricity tonight.

Power lines are down everywhere, and it could be a while before some of those customers are back on the grid. York region was hit hardest in our area.

In Bolton, power lines and large tree branches came crashing down on neighbourhood streets.

“All I kept hearing was cracks and I looked out the window and trees were just crashing down. It was quiet a mess,” says resident Fern Doria.

It was a big mess to clean up, and it's left thousands in the dark across the Caledon area. The ice buildup sent large tree branches crashing down on power lines. And in some cases, fire broke out.

The Caledon fire department has responded to more than 30 calls today.

“Most of the calls are storm related and we are having access issues,” says Deputy Fire Chief Darryl Bailey.

Across York Region, it’s the same story: snapped tree branches and drooping hydro lines coated in a thick layer of ice. PowerStream says tens of thousands of people in the region are without power including the Newmarket and Aurora areas. John Sedo says the lights went out early this morning. 

“No heat right now. We have a wood burning fire place we're going to be depending on later,” he says.

Hydro crews have been working around the clock to restore electricity, but it could take days before it’s fully restored.

“The weight of the ice is so heavy, we're still finding tree branches falling onto power lines causing new outages,” says Marylena Stea with Hydro One.

Many business in the Aurora area couldn’t even open today, but Joe Arcura managed to finish his baking just before the lights went out this morning. His Italian bakery was the only business open in its plaza.

“As we pulled everything out the power went out,” he says.

The power outage has also closed gas stations in town leaving some people scrambling to fill up. But what's even more concerning for some is not knowing how long it will be until electricity is restored.

A lot of people are trying to keep warm tonight, and to help some residents out the Town of Aurora has opened up a warming station this evening. Anyone can stop by to warm up at the Aurora Seniors’ Centre, which will be open until 10 p.m.