Submitted by Sharon Topping.
Much of the island is in for some nasty weather as an intense low pressure system is set to unleash heavy rain and high winds today and into tomorrow.
Environment Canada has a slew of alerts out, including wind warnings and coastal flood statements for the eastern coastline. A coastal flood warning has been issued for the south coast and southern Avalon due to the risk of storm surge.
Meteorologist Melissa Field says things will begin to intensify around lunchtime. There may be power outages as winds will be gusting over 100 km/h for parts of the south coast and Avalon Peninsula.
Southeasterly gusts will pick up to 100 – 110 km/h for the northeast Avalon this afternoon and westerlies will continue to gust up to 100 km/h on Wednesday. Things will be even more intense on the southern Avalon with gusts of 110 km/h this afternoon picking up to 120 km/h when the winds shift to the southwest this evening. It’ll still be quite breezy tomorrow with gusts in the range of 80 – 100 km/h.
Rainfall warnings are also in place with most areas expecting upwards of 50 mm of rainfall.
(MV Ala’suinu courtesy Marine Atlantic)
Marine Atlantic has already cancelled crossings for today and tomorrow. St. John’s International Airport is warning that there could be significant delays or cancellations due to the weather and advise all travellers to consult with their carrier.
Garbage collection in the City of St. John’s is cancelled for today. Pickup will go ahead in the Town of Paradise, however garbage and recycling collection scheduled for Wednesday will now be going ahead on Thursday.