As Hurricane Lee approaches, New Brunswickers are closely monitoring forecasts as they prepare for a weekend of heavy rainfall, aggressive winds and elevated water levels in certain areas throughout the province.
Andrew Dixon, the chief operating officer for Port Saint John, said his crews are “taking every precaution they can” leading up to Lee’s expected landfall on Saturday as they begin their hurricane preparation procedures.
He said crews will start by tying down two large industrial cranes on Thursday.
“We’ll be going around the port to different areas that are in our control, and we’ll make sure anything loose is put away or battened down,” he said.
Dixon said the port welcomed arrivals from more cruise ships than expected on Wednesday, as three vessels rejigged their itinerary to stop into Saint John earlier than scheduled to beat the weather.
“They will leave here tonight, all three of them, and head directly for New York,” Dixon said, noting that the cruise ships are now skipping their previously scheduled trips to Boston and Bar Harbor, Maine, due to the hurricane.
He said following the Wednesday evening departure, no other vessels are scheduled to arrive in Saint John for the rest of the week as they’ve all cancelled.
“As unfortunate as it is in a week like this, it’s a bit unusual to lose three ship calls to hurricane activity … but Lee is still predicted to come through the Bay of Fundy and very close to Saint John and the port,” he said.
“Everybody takes that pretty seriously.”
Dixon said if ships need to divert to Saint John due to disruptive and unsafe conditions, the port will have several designated locations to allow for ships to arrive and dock safely.
“We would definitely be looking to provide that solution for ships, whether they’re container, bulk or cruise,” he said.
Geoffrey Downey, a spokesperson for the New Brunswick Emergency Measures Organization, said his co-ordinators are in touch with groups across the province, including the Port of Saint John, and planning in response to the developing forecast.
“We’re really trying to get an accurate picture of what’s going on in the province and how prepared people are to adjust to changing circumstances,” he said.
“It’s tracking directly through the province,” he continued. “Most New Brunswickers, if not all, should be counting on a very wet and windy weekend.”
Downey is recommending people clear gutters, clean up their yards and remove dead branches from properties in preparation for the storm before weather conditions worsen.
“It’s not something we recommend people do on Friday night,” he said, referring to the heavy rainfall that is forecasted ahead of hurricane Lee landing as a post-tropical storm on Saturday.
New Brunswick’s Emergency Management Organization said in a social media post Wednesday that intense rainfall rates, high waves and damaging wind gusts are among the potential safety hazards with Lee’s forecasted approach in the province’s southern region.
“Make sure catch basins and gutters are clear and guiding water away from the home,” the post read, urging residents to monitor local forecasts and gather items for a 72-hour emergency preparedness kit.
Emergency kit items are defined as basic necessities such as food, water, flashlight, batteries and cash.
“Any items that you might need if you’re going for a weekend or a couple days to a camp … it’s also going to change from household to household,” Downey said.
Downey said the province’s emergency management office will remain in close touch and co-ordinate with municipal officials throughout the weekend.
On Wednesday, the Canadian Hurricane Centre said Lee had begun its anticipated northward turn toward Canada.
A tropical cyclone information statement was issued across all three Maritime provinces and parts of Quebec, warning that the intense system is likely to bring heavy rain and wind in the days ahead.
“The existing tropical airmass over Atlantic Canada will be further enhanced as the hurricane continues northward,” the statement said.
Lee is expected to move into the Canadian marine district as a Category 1 hurricane late Friday. The forward motion of the storm is then expected to slow, with the intensity dropping “below hurricane strength” and becoming post-tropical as it approaches land.
In an update on Wednesday afternoon, Environment Canada said the hurricane will become post-tropical at landfall when it arrives in eastern Maine or southern New Brunswick.
While Nova Scotia and southern New Brunswick are expected to have the largest impacts from wind, the heaviest rainfall is expected to the left of the track, in western New Brunswick and northward into the Rimouski-Mont-Joli-Baie-Comeau areas of Quebec.
Lee is the 12th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30 and peaked on Sunday.
The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration in August forecast between 14 and 21 named storms this season. Six to 11 of them are expected to become hurricanes, and of those, two to five might develop into major hurricanes.
— with files from Global News’ Nathalie Sturgeon and Alex Cooke
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