Residents In Canada Prepare Against ‘Historic’ Hurricane Fiona
Officials have warned residents along Canada’s Atlantic Coast to prepare for impact as Hurricane Fiona heads north after pummelling Bermuda.
The Canadian Hurricane Centre alerted that Fiona – anticipated to reach Canada’s shores by Saturday morning – could be “a historic, extreme event”.
Residents have been cautioned of potential coastal flooding, power outages and dangerous driving conditions.
At least eight people in Fiona’s path through the Caribbean have died, BBC reports.
According to Canadian forecasters late on Friday, Fiona – now a category three storm – was packing maximum sustained winds of up to 120 mph (195km/h), though this is projected to decrease as it makes landfall.
“It’s going to be a bad one,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday. “We encourage everyone to stay safe and to listen to the instructions of local authorities and hang in there for the next 24 hours.”
Nexus News learnt that the tropical storm warnings have been issued for the Atlantic provinces of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and New Brunswick, as well as in parts of Quebec.
The country’s eastern region could receive up to 10in (25cm) of rain, heightening the risk of flash flooding.
In Nova Scotia, shelters have been prepared in Halifax and Cape Breton – where the storm is projected to make landfall – for people to take cover ahead of the storm.
“We have been through these types of events before, but my fear is, not to this extent,” said Amanda McDougall, mayor of Cape Breton Regional Municipality.
“The impacts are going to be large, real and immediate.”
Intense hurricanes in Canada are ratsual, as storms lose their energy once they hit colder waters in the north and become post-tropical instead.
However, pressure in the region is foreseen to be historically low as Hurricane Fiona hits, making way for a heavier storm.
