A hurricane expected to transform into a huge post-tropical storm will bring hurricane-strength wind, heavy rain and big waves to Atlantic Canada, meteorologists said Friday in warning that it has the potential to be one of the most severe storms in the country’s history.
Hurricane Fiona, which had weakened a bit to a Category 3 storm, was forecast to make landfall Saturday morning.
The Canadian Hurricane Centre issued a hurricane watch over extensive coastal expanses of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Fiona should reach the area as a “large and powerful post-tropical cyclone with hurricane-force winds.”
Fiona was a Category 4 hurricane when it pounded Bermuda with heavy rains and winds earlier Friday as it swept by the island on a route heading for northeastern Canada. Authorities in Bermuda opened shelters and closed schools and offices ahead of Fiona. Michael Weeks, the national security minister, said there had been no reports of major damage.
The U.S. center said Fiona had maximum sustained winds of 125 mph (205 kph) early Friday evening. It was centered about 215 miles (345 kilometers) southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia, heading north at 46 mph (74 kph).
Hurricane-force winds extended outward up to 115 miles (185 kilometers) from the center and tropical storm-force winds extended outward up to 345 miles (555 kilometers).
Hubbard said the storm was weakening as it moved over cooler water and he felt it highly unlikely it would reach land with hurricane strength. Hurricanes in Canada are somewhat rare, in part because once the storms reach colder waters, they lose their main source of energy and become extratropical. But those cyclones still can have hurricane-strength winds, though with a cold instead of a warm core and no visible eye. Their shape can be different, too. They lose their symmetric form and can more resemble a comma.
Officials in Prince Edward Island sent an emergency alert warning of severe flooding along the northern shore of the province.
Authorities in Nova Scotia sent an emergency alert to phones warning of Fiona’s arrival and urging people to say inside, avoid the shore, charge devices and have enough supplies for at least 72 hours. Officials warned of prolonged power outages, wind damage to trees and structures and coastal flooding and possible road washouts.
Fiona so far has been blamed for at least five deaths — two in Puerto Rico, two in the Dominican Republic and one in the French island of Guadeloupe.
People across Atlantic Canada were stocking up on last-minute essentials and storm-proofing their properties Friday ahead of the arrival.
Meanwhile, the National Hurricane Center said a newly formed tropical depression in the southern Caribbean was expected to begin strengthening, and hit Cuba early Tuesday as a hurricane and then hit southern Florida early Wednesday.
It was centered about 410 miles (660 kilometers) east-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica. It had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (55 kph) and was moving at 15 mph (24 kph). A hurricane watch was issued for the Cayman Islands.
Before reaching Bermuda, Fiona caused severe flooding and devastation in Puerto Rico, leading U.S. President Joe Biden to say Thursday that the full force of the federal government is ready to help the U.S. territory recover.
Gov. Pedro Pierluisi of Puerto Rico activated the National Guard to help distribute diesel fuel to hospitals and supermarkets. The force is also supplying generators used to operate potable water plants and telecommunications towers. Hundreds of people remained isolated by blocked roads.
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