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9:15 p.m. – NB Power making progress restoring power after storm

By News Sep 17, 2023 | 7:26 AM

The current location and track of Lee as of 3 p.m. on Sept. 17, 2023. Image: Canadian Hurricane Centre

The remnants of post-tropical storm Lee are crossing the Gulf of St. Lawrence on their way toward Newfoundland as of mid-afternoon Sunday.

Lee came ashore at Nova Scotia’s Long Island around 4 p.m. Saturday and then rolled through New Brunswick in the evening.

What is left of Lee continues to weaken and is expected to reach Newfoundland by Sunday evening, according to the Canadian Hurricane Centre.

Most of the warnings related to the storm have come to an end, except for a rainfall warning for portions of Quebec’s Lower North Shore.

The Fredericton area received some of the highest rainfall totals, with Hanwell reporting 121 millimetres.

Here is a summary of rainfall totals, as of 2 p.m. Sunday, released by Environment Canada.

  • Hanwell: 121.1 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • Chamcook: 117.6 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • Grand Harbour: 99.3 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • Fredericton: 95.3 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • Pennfield Ridge: 93.4 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • St. Stephen: 91 mm (Environment Canada weather station)
  • Doaktown: 88 mm (Environment Canada weather station)
  • White Head: 85.1 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • New Maryland: 85.1 mm (CoCoRaHS volunteer report)
  • Point Lepreau: 85 mm (Environment Canada weather station)

Long Eddy Point on Grand Manan Island had the highest unofficial wind gust of 150 kilometres per hour.

Saint John saw a peak wind gust of 85 kilometres per hour while the Environment Canada monitoring station on Grand Manan recorded a wind gust of 83 kilometres per hour.

For the latest updates from New Brunswick agencies please click this link.

Power Update

NB Power is making progress restoring power to the more than 88,000 customers who were impacted by Lee.

Fewer than 2,300 homes and businesses remained without power as of 9:10 p.m. Sunday, with nearly 300 separate outages being reported.

There are more than 1,100 affected customers in the Charlotte Southwest region and more than 820 in the Central York/Sunbury region, which includes Fredericton.

Kennebecasis Valley/Fundy still has 140 customers without electricity, and there are 115 homes and businesses impacted in the Carleton region.

There are also a handful of outages in other parts of the province.

“As customer outages are restored in some communities, crews are being relocated where they are most needed,” the utility said in a statement. “Rest assured, we have crews in every district to respond to outages.”

Even with more than 700 people supporting restoration efforts, the utility expects it will be several days before all customers have their power back.

New Brunswick EMO reminds residents to be careful when using generators during a power outage.

“People have died and/or been hospitalized in recent years because of carbon monoxide poisoning,” they said in a Sunday afternoon news release.

You should never run a generator in your home, garage, or near a window or air intake of your house.

As well, never use a barbeque, camping stove or propane heater inside your house or garage.

“Note that carbon monoxide poisoning can still occur even if you have opened your window or garage door,” said New Brunswick EMO.

To check the NB Power outage map click here.

To check Saint John Energy outages click here. Or follow on Twitter.

Travel Update

Several roads remained closed Sunday afternoon across southern New Brunswick as a result of the storm.

According to the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure, St. David Ridge Road in the St. Stephen area is fully closed.

There are also several roads that are fully or partially closed in the Fredericton region, including:

  • Riverside Drive in Fredericton Junction
  • Route 102 in Islandview (between Burpee Bar Road and Everett Lane)
  • Cox Point Road in Cumberland Bay
  • Mazerolle Settlement Road (west of Mountain Road)
  • Gerome Street and Rainbow Avenue in Charters Settlement
  • Harris Loop Road
  • Route 102 in Gagetown
  • Waasis Farm Road
  • Route 645 (between Route 101 and Little Yoho Brook)
  • Ferry Bank Road

Motorists are reminded to check 511 New Brunswick or dial 511 for updates on the status of closures and the latest road conditions.

Flights are once again coming and going at the Moncton airport, but there are still some delays and cancellations.

It is a similar story at the Saint John Airport, where only minor delays are being reported.

To check the status of flights in and out of the Saint John Airport click this link.

To check the status of flights in and out of the Greater Moncton Roméo LeBlanc International Airport click this link.

Sunday morning ferry crossings between Saint John, N.B., and Digby, N.S., were cancelled but resumed in the afternoon.

If you are heading to Prince Edward Island, there is a possibility of restrictions on the Confederation Bridge until around 4 p.m. due to high winds.

Cleanup Efforts

The province said Sunday it does not expect to offer a disaster financial assistance program. Based on initial information from communities, there are “light” damages to infrastructure and properties.

“Wind and surface flooding are insurance losses. Impacted individuals should contact their insurance providers to report damage,” the province said in a news release.

Homeowners are reminded to take photos of damage to their homes or properties and to keep receipts of any repairs and replacement purchases.

If cleaning up your own property, you should log the number of hours of work undertaken by yourself or family members who have assisted.

Officials said you should also take appropriate measures to ensure food safety if power outages have occurred. More information is available online.

Here are a few examples of some of the damage caused by Lee in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

The storm surge was particularly bad along the coastal area of Nova Scotia as the waves threw rocks and stones on to highways and roads along the shoreline.

Two trees toppled in King's Square in uptown Saint John on Sept. 16, 2023. Image: Zach Periard
A tree down along Milltown Boulevard in St. Stephen. Image: Mark Downey
Massive waves crash against Sandy Point Lighthouse. (Image contributed by Amanda Fraser).