The Canadian Weather Centre (CWC) has announced that while Tropical Storm Leslie has been downgraded to post-Tropical Storm Leslie, it has packed quite a wallop in Newfoundland and parts of Nova Scotia, and is expected to leave the area by later on in the day on Tuesday.
The center of Leslie made landfall on the Southern Burin Peninsula near the town of Fortune at 8:30 am NDT on Tuesday. At that time, Tropical storm warnings and hurricane watches were in effect for parts of southern and eastern Newfoundland that were being directly affected by the storm. These watches and warnings have since been lifted.
As of 11:52 am ADT on Tuesday, the CWC reports that while maximum sustained winds are near 110 km/h with higher gusts, the storm is moving toward the NNE at approximately 65 km/h. Leslie is expected to accelerate away from Newfoundland by this afternoon. In the mean time, though, southerly winds continue to blast eastern Newfoundland with gusts reaching hurricane force from Bonavista to the Southern Avalon. Gusts of 130 km/h and above are possible until the storm moves away and the winds gradually diminish.
"[These winds] are causing some property damage, many large trees have fallen, there are power outages for much of St. John's and the Avalon Peninsula, [and] roofing materials and windows have been ripped out of some buildings," the CSC said.
In terms of the surf, waves along the south coast of Newfoundland area near 8 metres in Placentia Bay and along the Southern Avalon, leveling down to 4-6 metres further west. Along the east coast of Newfoundland, waves are growing from 4-6 metres and are expected to peak near 9 metres offshore this afternoon. Waves will continue to diminish to 2-3 metres overnight near the coast for most of the island.
The CWC says rainfall warnings have ended for most of Newfoundland but there are still some lingering bands over the western part of the island. 50-70 mm have fallen thus far in the west, with up to 100 mm over higher terrain. Central Newfoundland has received 30-40 mm with lesser amounts to the east.
The rainfall from Leslie caused localized flooding, roads and bridges "cut," and onlookers saw the Port au Port Peninsula temporarily isolated from the mainland. The rain has saturated local waterways and will likely keep river levels high over the next several days.
In other weather news, hurricane Michael has been downgraded to a tropical storm. It is well to the south of Leslie and is not expected to further impact Newfoundland or the surrounding areas. The storm is expected to dissipate, passing east of the Grand Banks over the next 1-2 days.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
