[Update: All systems restored, status upgraded to normal]

Raincity Studios' Vancouver team is working decentralized today as much of Vancouver's downtown core is still without power since an underground utility explosion yesterday (July 14th) afternoon near Richards and Pender/Dunsmuir St.

Despite the diligent efforts of the utility workers, power remains out at the office so the team are working from cafes and homes until restored.

As such, your calls may go unanswered but we are available to assist you via email or other contact methods.

This outage has no effect on web servers or other services so we anticipate no problems beyond larger than usual coffee bills.

Here's more:
Electrical Fire Knocks out Power Downtown Vancouver on Now Public

BC Hydro (utility company)

Power Outage Causes Chaos Downtown in the Vancouver Sun

Vancouver peaceful as blackout continues in the National Post

Power, traffic disrupted in downtown Vancouver via CTV.ca

Twice a year, the Raincity Studios Vancouver team turn off their laptops, relax their weary fingers, and refresh their brains with a week away from the bustle of the Gastown studio. Our next sojourn occurs from June 28 to July 6.

If there are urgent items on your agenda, please let us know promptly so we can serve you best before the break as your phone calls will likely go unanswered and emails will pile up a bit during this time.

Our colleagues at the Raincity Studios Shanghai office will still be working (don't worry they gets breaks too!) and tending to the needs of our beloved clients so fear not.

The Bryght hosting support staff will still feed and water the servers and monitor urgent support requests so you can pack your worries away while the Vancouver squad replenish ourselves with intellectual and recreation pursuits.

Question, comments, concerns? Drop us a note via the contact centre.

Thank you for your support!

Robert Scales, Kris Krug, and the Raincity Studios team ...

PS Will you miss us? Consider exploring the Raincity Studios blog and podcasts archive, or signing up to your local Drupal Group to get your fill of geekery in our absence.

Time flies when you keep busy! Over the last few months, I've been focusing on various projects. And as always, I've been lazy about blogging and keeping our peeps in the loop.

So what has Raincity been up to lately and what's coming for the next few months?

Our team is growing steadily. After a few months of searches (Thank you to everyone who sent in a resume), we are happy to welcome 3 new members to our team:

- Audrey Foo; veteran PHP Developer, founder and Director of the Vancouver PHP User Association, she is joining our Drupal Development team this month. Audrey will be collaborating on various client and internal projects.

So we've made it into the New Year. 2006 is shaping up to be super busy. Thought the holidays would slow down? No chance of that. I missed every single non-family holiday gathering, and the office is in full swing again now.

I thought it might be nice for interested locals to come by the Bryght office this Friday, January 6th and bring your lunch. We'll likely have some "Friday beverages" and some dessert-y items. Maybe leave a comment and/or blog about if you're coming, then we know how many napkins to fold into the shape of a swan. Come on over any time after 1pm.