Post-tropical cyclone Lee makes landfall in Nova Scotia, Canada

The centre of posttropical cyclone Lee made landfall Saturday in Nova Scotia Canada with sustained winds of 70 mph 110 kph US weather officials said Saturday The storms centre came ashore about 215 kilometers west of Halifax Nova Scotia the US National Hurricane Centre Thats about 80 kilometers southeast of Eastport MaineOnce a hurricane and still almost as strong as one storm Lee brought high winds rough surf and torrential rains Saturday to a large swath of New England and Maritime Canada toppling trees swamping coastlines and cutting power to tens of thousands Many denizens shrugged off Lee now a posttropical cyclone as not much worse than the regions famous and frequent noreasters a similarity some meteorologists acknowledged even while warning people not to underestimate itThe storms centre was expected to make landfall in Canada at near hurricane strength on Saturday afternoon then weaken as it moved into New Brunswick and the Gulf of St Lawrence forecasters said In the United States a tropical storm warning was in effect for a 230mile stretch from Portsmouth New Hampshire to the eastern end of Maine That included Bar Harbor the touristy gateway to Acadia National Park where officials closed a parking lot at a pier as high tide moved in and waves crashed against seawallsLee flooded coastal roads and boats in Nova Scotia knocked down power lines and trees and took ferries out of service as it fanned anxiety in a region still reeling from wildfires and severe flooding this summer Nova Scotias largest airport Halifax Stanfield International had no incoming or outgoing flights scheduled SaturdayPeople are exhausted Its so much in such a small time period said Pam Lovelace a councilor in Halifax the capital From a mental health perspective were asking people to check in on their neighbours A tropical storm warning was in effect for much of New Brunswick and all of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island along with a hurricane watch for parts of New Brunswick and Nova ScotiaThe storms centre was just off southern Nova Scotia dozens of miles southeast of Eastport Maine with maximum sustained winds near 110 kph the US National Hurricane Center said in its 2 pm EDT advisory Hurricane strength is 119 kph Hurricaneforce winds extended as far as 220 kilometers from Lees centre with tropicalstormforce winds extending as far as 630 kilometers enough to cover all of Maine and much of Maritime CanadaThe storm was so big that it caused power outages several hundred miles from its center At midday Saturday 11 per cent of electricity customers in Maine lacked power along with nearly a third of Nova Scotia 8 per cent of New Brunswick and 3 per cent of Prince Edward IslandStorm surge of 1 to 3 feet was predicted for the Maine coast and the US hurricane centre warned it would be accompanied by large and destructive waves The storm could drop as much as 4 inches of rain on parts of Maine Massachusetts Nova Scotia and New Brunswick through Saturday night with the potential for local flooding forecasters saidThe storm skirted some of the most waterlogged areas of Massachusetts that experienced severe flash flooding days earlier when fast water washed out roads caused sinkholes damaged homes and flooded vehiclesAt this point the storm is resembling a noreaster said Sarah Thunberg a National Weather Service meteorologist referring to the fall and winter storms that often plague the region and are so named because their winds blow from the northeast They typically have a much wider wind field than tropical systems whose winds stay closer to a storms centreBut the entire region has experienced an especially wet summer it ranked second in the number of rainy days in Portland Maine and Lees high winds toppled trees stressed by the rainsoaked ground in Maine the nations most heavily wooded stateCruise ships found refuge at berths in Portland while lobstermen in Bar Harbor and elsewhere pulled traps from the water and hauled boats inland Billy Bob Faulkingham House Republican leader of the Maine Legislature and another lobsterman survived after their boat overturned while hauling traps ahead of the storm Friday officials saidThe boats emergency locator beacon alerted authorities and the two clung to the hull until help arrived said Winter Harbor Police Chief Danny Mitchell The 42foot boat sank Theyre very lucky to be alive he said Lee lashed the US Virgin Islands the Bahamas and Bermuda before turning northward and heavy swells were causing lifethreatening surf and rip currents in the US and Canada according to the hurricane centreForecasters urged residents to stay home Nothing good can come from checking out the big waves and how strong the wind truly is said Kyle Leavitt director of the New Brunswick Emergency Management OrganizationBut many ventured out anyway Among them was Ren Renton on Maines Bailey Island a slender spit jutting into the Gulf of Maine The ocean is always dynamic no matter what storm you get she said It comes and goes and takes what it wants but hopefully not too muchLee shares some characteristics with 2012s Superstorm Sandy Both were once strong hurricanes that became posttropical cyclones cyclonic storms that have lost most of their tropical characteristics before landfall But Lee was not expected to be nearly as destructive as Sandy which caused billions of dollars in damage and was blamed for dozens of deaths in New York and New JerseyLee also isnt anywhere near as severe as the remnants of Hurricane Fiona which a year ago washed houses into the ocean knocked out power to most of two provinces and swept a woman into the sea said Canadian meteorologist Jill MaepeaDestructive hurricanes are relatively rare so far north The Great New England Hurricane of 1938 brought gusts as high as 300 kph and sustained winds of 195 kph at Massachusetts Blue Hill Observatory But there have been no storms that powerful in recent yearsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever