Hundreds of thousands of people along Canada’s Atlantic coast were still without power on Sunday and authorities say they have found the body of a woman who fell into the sea after remnants of Hurricane Fiona in the provinces washed away homes, destroyed roofs and blocked roads . of the land bordering that ocean.
After moving north from the Caribbean, Fiona made landfall before dawn on Saturday as a post-tropical cyclone, battering the provinces of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Quebec with hurricane-force winds, rain and storm surges.
Defense Minister Anita Anand said the army will help remove fallen trees, repair transport lines and do whatever is necessary for as long as necessary.
Fiona was credited with at least five deaths in the Caribbean and one more in Canada. Authorities found the body of a missing 73-year-old woman in the water in Channel-Port Aux Basques, a town on Newfoundland’s south coast.
The woman was in her home shortly before a wave hit her house Monday morning and took part of the basement with it, according to police. In a statement posted on social networks, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police announced that the body was recovered on Sunday afternoon with the help of the country’s Coast Guard and other rescue teams.
“We know what can happen when you live in coastal communities and another person has been tragically taken from us by the sea,” said Newfoundland MP Gudie Hutchings.
By Sunday afternoon, more than 211,000 Nova Scotia Power customers and more than 81,000 Maritime Electric customers in the province of Prince Edward Island — about 95% of the total — were without power. In New Brunswick, there were more than 20,600 homes and businesses without electricity.
More than 415,000 Nova Scotia Power customers — about 80% of the province’s nearly 1 million residents — were impacted by blackouts on Saturday.
Utilities have said it could take days to restore full service.
Cape Breton Island Regional Mayor Amanda McDougall said on Sunday that more than 200 people were in temporary shelters. More than 70 roads in the region were completely blocked. He said he couldn’t count the houses that were damaged in his neighborhood.
He said it was critical that the army arrive to help clear debris, noting that the road to the airport is inaccessible and the control tower was badly damaged.
McDougall found it unbelievable that no one in his community was hurt.
“The population listened to the warnings and did what they had to do, and this was the result,” he said.
Prince Edward Island Prime Minister Dennis King said more than 100 members of the military will arrive on Sunday to help with recovery efforts. Schools will remain closed on Monday and Tuesday, with many bridges noted to have been destroyed.
“Damage of this magnitude and severity has never been seen in the history of our county,” King said. He noted that it will take a “colossal effort from thousands of people” to recover in the coming days and weeks.
Kim Griffin, a spokeswoman for Prince Edward Island’s electricity provider, said it will likely take “many days” to restore service island-wide.
“There is a sense of shock and amazement in the streets at the magnitude of the storm,” said Sean Casey, an MP representing Charlottetown in Prince Edward Island, adding that people are determined to participate in the recovery effort.
__
Associated Press writer Stephen Groves, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, contributed to this report.
