Rainfall warning in effect for southwestern Newfoundland, possibility of flooding
CBC
Heavy rain is expected for areas along the southwest coast of Newfoundland Saturday afternoon into Sunday evening, as the current weather system causing severe flooding in Nova Scotia moves into the province.
Up to 150 mm of rain is expected throughout Sunday from Burgeo to Ramea and in the Channel-Port aux Basques region, the area that was ravaged by post-tropical storm Fiona last September.
Environment Canada has issued rainfall warnings for the region, with upwards of 70 to 100 mm of rain possible between Saturday afternoon and Sunday evening, and 150 mm or more possible in areas with the heaviest downpours.
Similar storms in the past have caused "elevated river levels, localized flooding, as well as road shoulder erosion and washouts," says Environment Canada, which also warns of the possibility for flash floods.
Channel-Port aux Basques mayor Brian Button says emergency crews are on standby in a town that has grappled with more than its fair share of severe weather, including widespread devastation from post-tropical storm Fiona and flooding caused by the remnants of post-tropical storm Nicole a couple of months later.
Button says residents who may run into trouble are urged to call the town's emergency line, which is 709-694-2844.
"We're trying to be as prepared as much as we can," says Button, "but, you know, when you get these type of forecasts with these type of rain events, the only things that we can do is just to try to respond as we go."
Button says the town saw heavy rain early Saturday afternoon that tapered off around lunchtime, and that crews have been monitoring systems in the town that have flooded or experienced other difficulties in the past.
As the town grapples with the effects of past extreme weather events, he says the most important step to prevent such devastation moving forward is for provincial and federal governments to help protect the town's shoreline.
"We have a lot of our infrastructure, a lot of our roads, a lot of that type of stuff that needs to be protected," said Button.
"Climate change is real. And we're experiencing more and more in our community alone."
Newfoundland's rainfall warning comes as Nova Scotia experiences its heaviest rainfall in 50 years, with some regions in the province seeing as much as 280 mm of rain, causing major flooding and evacuations.
Read more from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
An N.W.T judge has sentenced a man from Fort Good Hope to seven years in prison for killing another man from the community last year.
Alberta's government says residents who are not immunocompromised or on social programs will soon have to pay to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
A man shot by a police officer in a condo in Markham earlier this week has died, the Special Investigations Unit says.
Prince Edward Island's coroner's office is investigating a recent death at Joseph A. Ghiz Memorial Park in Charlottetown.
The RCMP is responding to a fatal collision south of Whitehorse that left one dead and another injured.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says Canada is calling for de-escalation after Israel targeted Iran's nuclear sites and killed Iranian military leaders with a barrage of airstrikes early Friday.
Police in Prince Edward Island are asking for the public's help identifying two men involved in separate incidents of indecent acts that were reported in Queens County.
A London couple say they've been hit with a steep and unexpected monthly expense, after the federal government stopped an elder family member's old age security payments without explanation — payments which went toward expensive nursing home costs.
"Please, allow me to show you my bus that I drive for G7," says the driver.
Newfoundland and Labrador is about four months out from what will likely become election season in the province — and a St. John's non-profit group thinks there will likely be some big changes at the local level.
Sault College president says its getting harder to maintain 'core programs' with financial pressures
Another post-secondary institution in northeastern Ontario is struggling to operate as it is squeezed by dropping international enrolment and a longstanding tuition freeze.
Councillors in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality have called for a full review of volunteer and career fire services over concerns about the number of departments and the cost of staffing and equipping them.
A New Brunswick RCMP officer testifying at a drug trafficking trial this week was questioned by the defence about theft charges he himself faces in an unrelated case.