Arthur to make landfall in Nova Scotia, prompts warnings throughout Maritimes

Forecasters say hurricane Arthur will likely make landfall in southwestern Nova Scotia on Saturday morning as a strong post-tropical storm.

The Canadian Hurricane Centre says tropical storm watches are in effect for all of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, as well as southern and eastern New Brunswick.

The centre says a trough of low pressure will be moving eastward from New England and will guide the storm, which was near the North Carolina coast early Friday, towards Atlantic Canada.

Arthur, the first named storm of the Atlantic season, will hit southwestern Nova Scotia and track across the province toward the southern Gulf of Saint Lawrence by late Saturday night.

Wind warnings have already been issued for parts of southwestern Nova Scotia, where winds will gust up to 100 kilometres an hour.

New Brunswick is expected to get the most rain, with more than 100 millimetres expected in some areas.

“The public should certainly pay close attention regarding weekend plans that may be sensitive to high winds and heavy rain conditions,” a forecast issued early Friday said.

Arthur began moving offshore and away from North Carolina’s Outer Banks early Friday after slashing into the state’s barrier islands overnight.

It strengthened to a Category 2 storm with winds of 160 kilometres per hour Thursday evening before passing over the southern end of the Outer Banks — a 320-kilometre string of narrow barrier islands with about 57,000 permanent residents.

The islands are susceptible to high winds, rough seas and road-clogging sands, prompting an exodus that began Wednesday night.

The storm was moving northeast early Friday after turning slightly west late Thursday, which increased the threat to mainland communities from flooding, tornadoes and intense winds.

About 22,000 were without power across the Carolinas early Friday, according to Duke Energy’s website.