Hurricane Fiona slammed into Canada’s Atlantic coast on Saturday, leaving half a million homes without power, property damage and a woman missing.
Packing maximum sustained winds of 50 miles per hour, Fiona will reach the Labrador Sea during the day and “will continue to deliver strong winds over northern Newfoundland, southeastern Labrador and parts of southeastern Quebec” on Sunday morning, according to the canadian hurricane. Center. “These winds will die down later in the day.”
“A War Zone”
Two women were swept away in the waters in Channel-Port-aux-Basques, in the province of Newfoundland, according to a police spokeswoman. One of the two victims, dragged after the collapse of her house, was rescued and hospitalized, the other remains missing.
At least 20 houses have been destroyed and the area looks like “a war zone,” Channel-Port-aux-Basques Mayor Brian Button said Saturday night in a video posted on Facebook. Boil water orders had been given, he added, encouraging residents to take shelter in a local school.
Uprooted trees, flattened houses, damaged power lines… By late Saturday afternoon, as many as 500,000 homes were left without power in the provinces of Nova Scotia, Ile-du-Prince Edward and New Brunswick.
Winds at 144 km/h
“I am thinking of all those affected by Hurricane Fiona. Know that we are with you,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted, announcing that federal authorities were ready “to provide additional resources to the provinces.”
“It will take time for Nova Scotia to recover. I just ask everyone for patience,” Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said in a statement.
Rainfall of up to 7.5 inches (192 millimeters) was recorded in Nova Scotia and waves up to 40 feet (12 meters) high hit that province and western Newfoundland, according to weather services. Fiona made landfall in Nova Scotia early Saturday with 90 mph winds.
Deaths in Puerto Rico, Guadalupe, Dominican Republic
Fiona had spent Friday away from Bermuda, after wreaking havoc in the Caribbean. The hurricane hit this British territory of some 64,000 inhabitants located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with gusts of 160 km/h and heavy rains, but without any reports of victims or significant damage.
Fiona caused the death of four people in Puerto Rico, a US territory, according to an official quoted by the media. One death was reported in Guadeloupe and two in the Dominican Republic.
Source: BFM TV
