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Houses were thrown into the water, roofs were ripped off, and Fiona knocked out electricity to nearly all of one Atlantic Canadian province and 80 percent of another as it made landfall as a large, violent post-tropical storm Saturday.
Fiona degraded from a hurricane to a post-tropical storm late Friday, but it retained hurricane-force gusts and produced torrential rainfall and massive waves. Ocean waves smashed the village of Port Aux Basques on Newfoundland’s southern coast, washing entire structures into the sea. As a result of the downed power lines, Mayor Brian Button announced on social media Saturday that people were being relocated to higher ground.
“We’ve already had houses… swept away,” he explained. Button stated that anyone who has been advised to leave their home must do so. “It’s a complete catastrophe out there,” he remarked. The Royal Canadian Police have declared an emergency in the 4,000-person hamlet as authorities deal with multiple electrical fires and residential flooding.
Outages impacted around 415,000 Nova Scotia Power customers Saturday morning, accounting for almost 80% of the province’s population of nearly 1 million people. Over 82,000 consumers in the province of Prince Edward Island were also without power, according to NB Power, while 44,329 in New Brunswick were without power.
The fast-moving Fiona made landfall in Nova Scotia before dawn Saturday, with its force down from Category 4 when it passed by Bermuda early Friday, though officials there reported no severe damage. Fiona has the lowest pressure ever recorded for a storm making landfall in Canada, according to the Canadian Hurricane Centre. Forecasters warned that it might be one of the most powerful hurricanes to hit the United States.
The mayor and council of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality have also proclaimed a state of local emergency due to significant power outages, road closures, and property damage. Homes have been extensively damaged as a result of downed trees, with large ancient trees crashing down and inflicting significant damage. We’re also witnessing houses with their roofs entirely ripped off and windows bursting in. There is a great deal of debris on the roads “The mayor of Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Amanda McDougall, told The Associated Press
“There is significant damage to property and structures, but no one has been injured as of yet. Again, we’re still in the thick of it “She stated. “It’s still frightening. I’m sitting in my living room, and the strong winds are threatening to blow open the patio doors.”
McDougall stated that the shelter they opened overnight was full and that they will look to add more. The federal Ministry of Public Safety warned against all non-essential car travel. A hurricane warning has been issued for the coasts of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland.
The funeral of slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been postponed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.”Of course, we hope there won’t be much need, but we believe there will,” Trudeau added. “Follow the directions of local authorities and persevere for the following 24 hours.”
Fiona had maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (150 kph) Saturday, according to the National Hurricane Center. It was making its way across eastern Canada. Hurricane-force winds extended 175 miles (280 kilometers) from the center, while tropical-storm-force winds extended 405 miles (650 kilometers).
Hurricanes are uncommon in Canada, in part because they lose their main source of energy once they reach colder waters. Post-tropical cyclones, on the other hand, can still produce hurricane-force winds despite having a cold core and no visible eye. They also frequently lose their symmetric shape and resemble a comma.
“As it approached land, the storm was tremendously powerful. Even as it moves away, it will continue to have an impact on the region for several hours today “Saturday morning, Ian Hubbard, a meteorologist at the Canadian Hurricane Centre in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, said.
Hubbard stated that he lost electricity at his home and had to drive the long distance to work due to bridge closures. He stated that while there are felled trees and signs in the Halifax area, other areas of the province are worse impacted.
According to Christina Lamey, a spokeswoman for the region, roughly 20 individuals have taken sanctuary inside the Centre 200 sports and entertainment center in Sydney, Nova Scotia, the main city in Cape Breton. ”The main takeaway from that is that people should stay at home,” she said. “The first responders are currently overburdened. We want people to avoid driving. The majority of the roadways are hazardous, with power wires and trees down.”
The Canadian Hurricane Centre’s Warning Preparedness Meteorologist, Bob Robichaud, said Fiona was shaping up to be a larger storm system than Hurricane Juan, which devastated the Halifax area in 2003. Fiona is almost the same magnitude as post-tropical storm Dorian in 2019. “But it’s stronger than Dorian,” he pointed out. “It will undoubtedly be a historic, extreme occurrence for eastern Canada.”
Authorities in Nova Scotia also issued an emergency notice to phones, warning of Fiona’s approach and asking people to stay indoors, avoid the coast, charge electronics, and stock up on supplies for at least 72 hours. Fiona has been accused of at least five deaths, two in Puerto Rico, two in the Dominican Republic, and one in Guadeloupe, France.
Meanwhile, the National Hurricane Center said newly created Tropical Storm Ian in the Caribbean was forecast to grow further and reach Cuba as a hurricane early Tuesday before moving on to southern Florida early Wednesday. It was located around 315 miles (519 kilometers) southeast of Kingston, Jamaica. It had maximum sustained winds of 45 miles per hour (75 kilometers per hour) and was heading west-northwest at 14 miles per hour (22 kph). The Cayman Islands have been placed under a hurricane watch.
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