Canada prepares for historic impact of Hurricane Fiona

Sylvie Claire / September 24, 2022

The Atlantic coast of Canada was preparing Friday evening for the impact in the night or early Saturday of Hurricane Fiona, described as a "historic" storm by the weather service of the country, after its devastating passage in the Caribbean.

Where it will go in the history books, we'll have to determine after the fact, but it will certainly be a historic and extreme event for eastern Canada," Bob Robichaud, a meteorologist with the Canadian Hurricane Centre (CHC), said Friday at a news conference, calling Fiona a "major" hurricane.

In its latest bulletin, the CHC says "this storm is expected to be a severe weather event for Atlantic Canada and eastern Quebec.

Carrying sustained winds of up to 195 km/h, the hurricane was located at 00:00 GMTjust over 200 km south of Sable Island, a small sandy strip off the coast of Nova Scotia, and was moving northward at a speed of 56 km/h, according to the CHC.

Fiona will become a very intense post-tropical storm when it makes landfall over eastern Nova Scotia tonight or early Saturday morning," the CHC wrote, still forecasting "very heavy rain and high winds" and "large waves.

Authorities in the easternmost province of Nova Scotia have issued a power outage warning, asking everyone to stay indoors and have enough supplies for at least 72 hours.

In neighbouring Prince Edward Island, residents were also preparing for the hurricane's arrival.

At a press conference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked everyone to "take the proper precautions. »

Earlier on Friday, Bermuda had been rocked by 160 km/h gusts and heavy rains. But after wreaking havoc in the Caribbean, Fiona passed some 100 miles off the British territory in the mid-Atlantic Ocean, with no casualties or major damage.

The electricity provider Belco reported that 15,000 of the 36,000 homes were still without power Friday afternoon.

The territory, located about 1,000 kilometers from the United States and accustomed to hurricanes, is one of the most isolated places in the world, making evacuation nearly impossible in an emergency.

The main island had therefore taken the preparations seriously. Buildings and houses must also comply with strict construction rules to withstand storms.

Fiona caused the death of four people in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, according to an official cited by the media. One death was reported in Guadeloupe, France, and two in the Dominican Republic.

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Canada prepares for historic impact of Hurricane Fiona

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