“Historic” storm brings severe winds, heavy rain to Atlantic Canada, eastern Quebec

HALIFAX — Hundreds of thousands of customers are without power across Atlantic Canada as post-tropical storm Fiona makes landfall over Nova Scotia’s eastern Guysborough County.

The Canadian Hurricane Centre said early Saturday that Fiona is expected to pass through Cape Breton Saturday morning, and then reach the Quebec Lower North Shore and Southeastern Labrador by late evening. 

The agency says hurricane force wind gusts have already been recorded over eastern mainland Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, Prince Edward Island, Îles-de-la-Madeleine, and southwestern Newfoundland, and tropical storm force winds will spread into eastern Quebec, and southeastern Labrador Saturday. 

The storm, characterized as “historic” in its scope by meteorologists, is also forecasted to bring between 100 to 200 millimetres of rain across much of Atlantic Canada and eastern Quebec, with more than 200 millimetres expected to fall in areas closer to the storm’s path.

As much as 120 millimetres of rainfall has already been reported at weather stations over eastern Nova Scotia. 

Storm surge warnings are in effect for most of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, southwestern Newfoundland, eastern Nova Scotia and the East Coast of New Brunswick, with waves possibly surpassing 12 metres in eastern portions of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Cabot Strait.

Coastal flooding remains a threat for parts of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island including the Northumberland Strait, the Gulf of St. Lawrence region including Iles-de-la-Madeleine and eastern New Brunswick, southwest Newfoundland, St. Lawrence Estuary and the Quebec Lower North Shore. 

Hurricane and tropical storm warnings are in effect for most areas, along with wind and rainfall warnings from the Atlantic Storm Prediction Centre.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2022.

The Canadian Press