Wind, rain to lash parts of Nova Scotia on Monday

High winds could cause some havoc across parts of Nova Scotia on Monday.

Environment Canada issued a special weather statement late Sunday afternoon for the Maritime provinces, saying parts of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and almost all of Prince Edward Island coud experience heavy winds and rain.

It says parts of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and almost all of Prince Edward Island could see heavy winds and rain.say

The weather alert says Nova Scotia could also see wind reaching up to 100 kilometres per hour on Monday, particularly in parts of Halifax Regional Municipality, although the total rainfall amounts are not expected to be significant.

Environment Canada cautions that the gusting winds could damage buildings, particularly shingles and windows. 

Cape Breton should experience high wind gusts and heavy rain into the overnight hours and elevated water levels and large waves are expected along the Atlatnic coast Monday evening, especially in Richmond and Cape Breton counties.

Meanwhile, Nova Scotia Power issued a news release Sunday afternoon, saying it will be opening its emergency operations centre on Monday at 9 a.m. ahead of the approaching weather.

“Based on the latest weather forecasts we are expecting rain and high winds for long durations to move across the province starting Monday morning,” said Matt Drover, Nova Scotia Power’s storm Lead. 

He said the company is activating the emergency centre to best co-ordinate planning for the storm response. 

The centre is staffed with employees from across the company. The Nova Scotia Power team is also working closely with the Nova Scotia Emergency Management Office, the release said.

“We will be positioning crews across the province so they are ready to respond as soon as it is safe to do so,” said Drover. “High winds can cause trees to come into contact with power lines causing power outages and can also slow restoration efforts, as crews must stand down when winds reach 80 km/h until it’s safe to go up in the buckets.”

Customers are encouraged to be prepared too, by securing items outside their homes and having an emergency kit handy. 

Customers can report outages and get estimated restoration times online at outagemap.nspower.ca or by calling 1-877-428-6004. 

Estimated restoration times are updated as our crews assess the damage.

The company says the impact of a wind storm can vary depending on how fast the weather system moves across a region or province and the strength of the wind and how long it lasts.