This satellite image provided by CIRA/NOAA shows hurricane Lee in the Atlantic Ocean on Sept. 11. The Canadian Hurricane Centre says hurricane Lee could make landfall this weekend anywhere from Maine to southeastern Nova Scotia.The Canadian Press
Officials from Atlantic Canada are warning residents to prepare for an active hurricane season this year as Hurricane Lee whirls up the coast and is expected to lash parts of the Maritimes this weekend with strong winds and heavy rain.
Hurricane Lee is tracking northwesterly toward southern Nova Scotia and New Brunswick where much of its strength is expected to weaken into a post-tropical storm once it reaches cooler sea-surface temperatures Friday night into Saturday, according to the Canadian Hurricane Centre.
“It will still be a strong storm,” the hurricane centre’s meteorologist Ian Hubbard said, adding that a wide swath of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick is going to be affected. “Everyone tends to remember the last big storm and this is definitely not on the same scale as Fiona. That’s a good thing.”
The Category 3 hurricane was about 2,100 kilometres south of Halifax on Wednesday morning, said Mr. Hubbard, adding that it should be below hurricane strength when it makes landfall. Specifics about wind speed and rainfall aren’t yet known, but he predicts New Brunswick will see the most precipitation and strongest winds, which are also expected to hit southern Nova Scotia. Rough surf is also on the horizon starting as early as Thursday, he added.
With an above-normal hurricane season forecast for the region, provincial governments have advised the public to be prepared to meet their needs for three days. “Everyone should have a plan in place to protect their family and property,” said New Brunswick’s Public Safety Minister Kris Austin in a recent statement.
Nova Scotia has recently launched an awareness campaign to advise people on how to prepare for power outages, storm surges, flooding and property damage that can accompany hurricane winds and rain.
“I know we’re all feeling weather-weary, but hurricane season is upon us,” said Nova Scotia Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister John Lohr in a statement. Mr. Lohr is responsible for the Emergency Management Office, which recently came under fire for taking nearly two hours to issue an emergency alert during flash flooding in the West Hants area of the province, where four people, including two children, were killed.
Paul Mason, executive director of the Emergency Management Office, said in an interview that if the province needs to put out an emergency alert, it’s ready.
He said his office recently met with public officials in municipalities after the disastrous flood and discussed ways to streamline communication to get emergency alerts out sooner, though no new procedural changes have been adopted.
“We’ll be having further discussions over the next few weeks,” said Mr. Mason. “That may result in some changes. It really depends on what comes forward.”
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has projected the 2023 hurricane season to be above normal. Record warm temperatures and the slow arrival of the calming effects of El Nino are contributing factors, the agency said.
Last September, post-tropical storm Fiona thrashed the Atlantic provinces, uprooting tens of thousands of trees and disrupting power in some areas for weeks. It carried an enormous storm surge that ate huge chunks of the northern PEI coastline and swept away part of the community of Channel-Port aux Basques in Newfoundland and Labrador, where one woman was killed.
PEI meanwhile launched a readiness team comprised of government officials and emergency measures staff to prepare for the higher-than-usual number of hurricanes expected to hit the region.
“With the impacts of climate change, the rising water temperature, and the forecast of having between 14 to 21 named storms in the Atlantic this fall, as a province we must do everything we can to prepare for what could be a challenging few months ahead,” PEI Premier Dennis King said in a recent statement.
People should be prepared for a disruption to telecommunications, said Mr. Mason, though companies now have backup generators to keep working for longer during power outages.
The 2023 hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
With a report from The Canadian Press