Thousands without power as damaging winds sweep across Winnipeg and surrounding areas

Households throughout Winnipeg and all around the southern part of the province woke up in the cold Thursday.

RELATED: Weather warnings in effect for some parts of southern Manitoba

High winds and freezing rain have wreaked havoc on power lines, causing multiple outages.

Manitoba Hydro reported as of 11 a.m. there were 176 outages throughout the province with a total of 7,318 customers without power.

Get breaking National news

Get breaking Canada news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you won't miss a trending story.

Sign up for breaking National newsletter Get Started

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

In the City of Winnipeg alone, 41 outages have been reported, affecting just under 5,200 customers.

West St. Paul, Stanley, Gimli and Rhineland are the next hardest hit areas as people without electricity number in the hundreds.

Emergency and Hydro crews have been dealing with downed power lines and reminding motorists and pedestrians to use extreme caution.