Highs winds from post-tropical storm Dorian toppled several large trees in King's Square in uptown Saint John on Sept. 7, 2019. (Photo: Brad Perry/Wave News)
The cleanup has begun across the Maritimes after post-tropical storm Dorian slammed into the region Saturday.
Hundreds of thousands of people were left without power after high winds snapped branches and toppled trees.
NB Power said more than 31,000 customers were without electricity as of 7 p.m. Sunday. That is down from more than 80,000 customers during the peak Saturday evening.
The hardest-hit region is Moncton/Riverview/Dieppe, where more than 14,000 homes and businesses remained without power Sunday evening.
More than 2,200 customers remained off the grid in the Kennebecasis Valley/Fundy region and more than 1,100 customers in Kings/Queens counties.
Marc Belliveau, a spokesperson with NB Power, said the heavy winds and rain created problems for power lines.
Belliveau said he does not expect lengthy outages for most customers unless they run into some damages which are difficult to repair in one day.
“Occasionally what’ll happen, and this is when things get very complicated, is if there is large damage to major transmission poles, let’s say in a very remote area, then it’s difficult to say until it’s been assessed.”
We appreciate your patience and understanding as our crews work to restore everyone affected as quickly and safely as possible. Restoration efforts will continue overnight. Visit https://t.co/qyGRAtW91T or call 1 800 663 6272 for outage updates. pic.twitter.com/VmnLmMS2jX
— NB Power (@NB_Power) September 7, 2019
More than 50 contractors and 20 vegetation crews will be working Sunday to assess damages and cut trees.
Belliveau said estimated restoration times will be posted on their website. He encouraged customers to check for updated times throughout the day.
Meanwhile, Saint John Energy said about 100 customers remain without power in the city as of 7 p.m. Sunday.
The utility said most of those customers should have their power restored by around midnight Sunday night.
“Crews are working safely and we remind customers to be safe and to stay away (at least 10 metres) from falling lines as they may be energized,” said spokesperson Jessica DeLong said.
The situation is much worse in Nova Scotia, where more than 260,000 customers remained off the grid Sunday evening. That is down from more than 400,000 customers during the storm’s peak.
Nova Scotia Power said the hardest-hit areas include Halifax, Dartmouth, Sydney and Bridgewater.
Dorian Damage
Post-tropical storm Dorian left behind a considerable amount of damage in its wake.
There have been countless reports of downed trees throughout the Maritimes, in addition to damaged power poles and lines.
In uptown Saint John, Dorian’s strong winds toppled several large trees in King’s Square.
The powerful winds from #Dorian have toppled several trees in King’s Square in uptown #SaintJohn. pic.twitter.com/fxE1Amw5oG
— Brad Perry (@BradMPerry) September 8, 2019
Saint John police said officers responded to 145 calls within a 12-hour period on Saturday.
Spokesperson Jim Hennessy said many were calls associated with the fire department for fallen power lines, trees and collisions.
“Officers also assisted several drivers whose vehicles didn’t make it through some of the high water on flooded streets,” Hennessy said. No injuries were reported.
The winds were strong enough to cause a large crane to collapse onto a building under construction in Halifax, N.S.
Officials also reported storm surge flooding in several Atlantic coastal areas, including Halifax Harbour and along eastern coastlines in New Brunswick.
The province of Nova Scotia requested federal assistance and up to 700 military personnel in Atlantic Canada are preparing to deploy as early as Sunday morning.
Expected tasks will include helping with the restoration of power, clearing main roadways, and evacuating residents in flooded or severely damaged areas.
Dorian By The Numbers
Environment Canada says Dorian performed pretty much as expected when it arrived in the Maritimes.
The centre of the storm made landfall southwest of Halifax, N.S., early Saturday evening.
#Dorian made landfall over the Chebucto Peninsula between Terence Bay and Sambro close to 7pm as a strong post-tropical system. Continue to follow https://t.co/4xIIPxgCrs for further updates. pic.twitter.com/2icA12gZgd
— ECCC Canadian Hurricane Centre (@ECCC_CHC) September 7, 2019
Meteorologist Roberta McArthur said wind gusts reached between 100 and 120 kilometres per hour through much of Nova Scotia, with some areas seeing gusts upwards of 140 kilometres per hour.
Several areas of the province picked up nearly 140 millimetres of rain, including Oxford and Lower Sackville.
In New Brunswick, the cities of Saint John and Moncton saw peak wind gusts of 95 kilometres per hour.
Moncton saw the most rain with 121 millimetres, while Saint John received 82 millimetres and Fredericton reported 75 millimetres.
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