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Maritimes hunker down as Bill lurches north
Updated Sat. Aug. 22 2009 10:52 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
The Canadian Hurricane Centre has issued tropical storm warnings and hurricane watches for much of Atlantic Canada as Bill churns toward the east coast of the U.S., packing sustained winds of nearly 140 kilometres per hour.
As Bill moved north Saturday evening, many locals in the Maritimes were busy stocking up on candles, batteries and other basics in advance of the storm, which is expected to bring power outages, high winds and heavy rain in many communities.
Tropical storm warnings have been issued for the entire Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, including Queens County, Lunenberg County and Halifax Metro and Halifax County West, which call for sustained winds of at least 65 kilometres per hour and heavy rainfall.
While U.S. officials downgraded Bill to a Category 1 hurricane on Saturday, officials say the storm can still wreak havoc in the area.
"Ninety to 140 mm of rain is currently estimated for the Atlantic coastal counties of Nova Scotia, with 70 to 110 mm further north," Environment Canada said on its website Saturday.
"With these rainfall amounts in such a short time frame, localized flooding is anticipated."
Though Bill is weakening, that's no reason to underestimate the storm's potential to cause damage in Canada, said Joe Bastardi, AccuWeather's chief meteorologist.
"Would you want to fight Mohammed Ali when he was 25, or when he was 40? Both times he was tough."
Many parts of eastern mainland Nova Scotia are under a hurricane watch, including Guysborough County, Richmond County, and the eastern Cape Breton area.
There are also tropical storm watches for the rest of Nova Scotia, most of P.E.I. and almost all of Newfoundland.
New Brunswick is not expected to be hit too hard, though winds may gust up to 70 kilometres per hour in some places, with much as 40 mm of rainfall.
Many locals near Halifax, like Nick Dubois, aren't taking any chances. On Saturday, he was busy moving his nine-metre boat to a secure location in the harbour.
"The less things that are exposed to the wind, the better," he told CTV News.
Bill will make its way up the eastern seaboard of the United States Saturday and early Sunday and should hit Nova Scotia by Sunday evening. It is expected to make landfall in Newfoundland around midnight Sunday.
Bill hammered Bermuda early Saturday morning with winds topping 165 kilometres per hour, knocking down palm trees, scattering debris and cutting power to about 3,700 people.
A tropical storm warning has been issued for the Massachusetts coast, which includes Martha's Vineyard, where U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to vacation this week.
Peter Bowyer of the Canadian Hurricane Centre said Bill isn't expected to be as severe as Hurricane Juan, which killed at least two people and caused about $100 million worth of damage when it made landfall in September 2003.
But the high winds and rain will likely wreak havoc across the region.
"This is a good day to get ready because all of that weather is coming tomorrow," Bowyer told CTV News Channel Saturday in a telephone interview from Dartmouth, N.S. "It's just going to get messier and uglier as the day goes on. The winds are going to increase; the rain is going to increase."
The weather warnings have led Marine Atlantic to suspend ferry service between Port aux Basques, N.L. and North Sydney, N.S., starting on Sunday morning.
The last ferries departed at 8 p.m. Saturday.
According to John Majchrowicz, vice president of operations, the service suspension is expected to last for at least 24 hours.
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNe.../bill_atlantic_090822/20090822?hub=TopStories
Updated Sat. Aug. 22 2009 10:52 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
The Canadian Hurricane Centre has issued tropical storm warnings and hurricane watches for much of Atlantic Canada as Bill churns toward the east coast of the U.S., packing sustained winds of nearly 140 kilometres per hour.
As Bill moved north Saturday evening, many locals in the Maritimes were busy stocking up on candles, batteries and other basics in advance of the storm, which is expected to bring power outages, high winds and heavy rain in many communities.
Tropical storm warnings have been issued for the entire Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, including Queens County, Lunenberg County and Halifax Metro and Halifax County West, which call for sustained winds of at least 65 kilometres per hour and heavy rainfall.
While U.S. officials downgraded Bill to a Category 1 hurricane on Saturday, officials say the storm can still wreak havoc in the area.
"Ninety to 140 mm of rain is currently estimated for the Atlantic coastal counties of Nova Scotia, with 70 to 110 mm further north," Environment Canada said on its website Saturday.
"With these rainfall amounts in such a short time frame, localized flooding is anticipated."
Though Bill is weakening, that's no reason to underestimate the storm's potential to cause damage in Canada, said Joe Bastardi, AccuWeather's chief meteorologist.
"Would you want to fight Mohammed Ali when he was 25, or when he was 40? Both times he was tough."
Many parts of eastern mainland Nova Scotia are under a hurricane watch, including Guysborough County, Richmond County, and the eastern Cape Breton area.
There are also tropical storm watches for the rest of Nova Scotia, most of P.E.I. and almost all of Newfoundland.
New Brunswick is not expected to be hit too hard, though winds may gust up to 70 kilometres per hour in some places, with much as 40 mm of rainfall.
Many locals near Halifax, like Nick Dubois, aren't taking any chances. On Saturday, he was busy moving his nine-metre boat to a secure location in the harbour.
"The less things that are exposed to the wind, the better," he told CTV News.
Bill will make its way up the eastern seaboard of the United States Saturday and early Sunday and should hit Nova Scotia by Sunday evening. It is expected to make landfall in Newfoundland around midnight Sunday.
Bill hammered Bermuda early Saturday morning with winds topping 165 kilometres per hour, knocking down palm trees, scattering debris and cutting power to about 3,700 people.
A tropical storm warning has been issued for the Massachusetts coast, which includes Martha's Vineyard, where U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to vacation this week.
Peter Bowyer of the Canadian Hurricane Centre said Bill isn't expected to be as severe as Hurricane Juan, which killed at least two people and caused about $100 million worth of damage when it made landfall in September 2003.
But the high winds and rain will likely wreak havoc across the region.
"This is a good day to get ready because all of that weather is coming tomorrow," Bowyer told CTV News Channel Saturday in a telephone interview from Dartmouth, N.S. "It's just going to get messier and uglier as the day goes on. The winds are going to increase; the rain is going to increase."
The weather warnings have led Marine Atlantic to suspend ferry service between Port aux Basques, N.L. and North Sydney, N.S., starting on Sunday morning.
The last ferries departed at 8 p.m. Saturday.
According to John Majchrowicz, vice president of operations, the service suspension is expected to last for at least 24 hours.
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNe.../bill_atlantic_090822/20090822?hub=TopStories