Charlottetown residents asked to stay home in wake of Hurricane Fiona

Charlottetown police are asking residents to stay off the roads and shelter in place a full day after Hurricane Fiona ravaged P.E.I., leaving the vast majority of the Island's residents still without power or heat on Sunday morning.

Hurricane Fiona hit P.E.I. in the early morning hours of Saturday, with heavy rain and winds over 170 km/h. There have been reports of widespread damage to property, but no serious injuries to people.

Charlottetown police Chief Brad MacConnell told CBC News it's still not safe for residents to venture outside except in case of emergency.

"We ask people to stay home unless absolutely necessary," he said.

"Stay home unless you absolutely need to go somewhere, like a reception centre or a place in need. Now is not the time to be curious about what's going on in our community, now is not the time to be reckless in your actions by exposing yourself to danger … and now is not the time to be selfish when it comes to those things."

MacConnell said crews haven;t been able to conduct a full assessment of the damage as of Sunday, but there's "a lot of devastation" and hardly an area of the city that hasn't been significantly impacted.

"I don't think people fully appreciate the danger that's out in the community right now," he said.

"It's amazing the difference of a day in the weather but the challenges of Fiona are still with us and we're working through them."

MacConnell said public works crews were working with Maritime Electric to open up roadways for emergency services personnel. 

As of 9 a.m., power remained off to more than 82,000 Maritime Electric customers. On Saturday, the utility warned Islanders to be prepared to be without power for at least 48 hours.

Further updates are expected Sunday as the massive cleanup effort continues.

Maritime Electric also reminded residents to assume downed power lines are live and stay clear.

Conditions across the Island remained unsafe through the day Saturday as the province was hit with high winds and rain, making it difficult to assess damage — much less begin the long task of restoring infrastructure.

Roads throughout the province remained blocked by downed trees and power lines Sunday morning, making travel through the province difficult and dangerous.