Hurricane Fiona hit Bermuda with heavy rain early Friday as the now Category 3 storm tracked northeastern Canada.
The center of the storm was passing northwest of Bermuda on Friday morning with maximum sustained winds approaching 125 mph, with higher gusts, the US National Hurricane Center said. The storm was downgraded from a Category 4 hurricane as it moved across the island, he said.
Now he is targeting Atlantic Canada, where the strength of the storm will be historic for that region.
The Canadian Hurricane Center said Fiona is expected to reach waters in the maritime province of Nova Scotia by Friday evening, with “heavy rain” and powerful “hurricane-force winds” expected to batter Atlantic Canada and eastern Quebec starting Saturday morning.
“This storm is shaping up to be a serious event for Atlantic Canada and eastern Quebec,” he said on his website in an update early Friday. “Many weather models are consistent in their prediction of what we call a deep hybrid low pressure system, possessing both tropical and intense winter storm properties, with very heavy precipitation and high winds.”
Hurricanes in Canada are relatively rare, with storms generally losing their main source of energy when they hit cooler waters.
However, Canada’s east coast has experienced such storms before, including Hurricane Juan in 2003, which severely affected parts of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island and claimed several lives, according to the Canadian Hurricane Center. The storm also caused widespread power outages, extensive tree damage and record coastal water levels, he said.
The North Atlantic, where Fiona is heading, also represents some of the fastest warming waters in the world, with warming sea surface temperatures in the region attributed to climate change.
The hurricane center said the high winds and rains expected with Fiona would have “major impacts” on eastern Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, western Newfoundland, eastern Quebec and southeastern Labrador.
“There will also be large waves, especially for the Atlantic coasts of Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and the eastern parts of the Gulf of St. Lawrence,” the hurricane center said. He also warned of the strong possibility of a “storm surge,” or an abnormal rise in water caused by a storm, in parts of Nova Scotia, western Newfoundland and of the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
The hurricane center also warned of the possibility of downed trees and power outages, noting that “most areas will experience hurricane-force winds.” He said construction sites could also be “particularly vulnerable” to the storm.
Fiona left major devastation in her wake, including eight deaths believed to be storm-related in Puerto Rico, one confirmed death in the Dominican Republic and another confirmed death in Guadeloupe.
In Puerto Rico, much of the population is still without power and access to clean water as recovery efforts continue after homes were destroyed, trees downed and roads blocked by the hurricane.
As of Friday morning, at least 928,000 customers were affected by power outages in Puerto Rico, according to online tracker PowerOutage.us.
Speaking at a Thursday briefing with officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in New York, President Joe Biden said hundreds of FEMA and other federal officials were working on the ground to help with efforts. response to Puerto Rico.
“We are all in this together,” the president said, as he expressed concern that many homes and businesses were still without electricity and clean water.
Biden also noted that Fiona’s devastation came exactly five years after Hurricane Maria, the deadliest US natural disaster in more than 100 years, hit Puerto Rico.
“To the people of Puerto Rico who are still suffering from Hurricane Maria five years later,” he said, “we are with you. We are not going to go away. We really mean it.”