Atlantic Canada begins long cleanup, expects slow recovery after hurricane Fiona

The storm named Fiona slammed into Canada’s eastern seaboard with hurricane-force winds and torrential rainfall Saturday, pulling buildings into the ocean, collapsing homes, toppling trees and knocking out power for hundreds of thousands of people.

Fiona first wreaked havoc in the Caribbean as a hurricane before moving up the Atlantic and making landfall again as a post-tropical cyclone. The storm ripped a path of destruction in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland before weakening and moving out to sea Sunday.

Now, officials are beginning to account for the damage brought forth to the region.

Nova Scotia, where Fiona first made landfall during the early morning hours Saturday, was hit hard by the storm. Powerful winds toppled trees and power lines, washed out roads, littered neighborhoods with debris, and in many cases, snapped whole power poles in half, officials said.

Officials are prioritizing power restoration after Fiona ravaged power lines and communication networks across the province, Premier Tim Houston said Sunday morning.

“Getting roads cleared, giving space to the crews to do what needs to be done, that’s the most important thing right now,” Houston said. “It will take time.”

Houston said there haven’t been too many reports of serious injuries, though about 200 people are currently displaced from their homes.

“The damage is significant, but right now that the priority right now is getting power back to people, getting people to a safe shelter, getting, you know, some return to normal,” he said. “That will take time when we come out of this.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday that the government approved Nova Scotia’s request for federal assistance and that Canadian Armed Forces will be deployed to help out in the region. The Prime Minister said residents lived through a “terrifying” 12 hours Saturday.

“People have seen their homes washed away, seen the winds rip schools’ roofs off,” Trudeau said. “And as Canadians, as we always do in times of difficulty, we will be there for each other.”

CNN