A winter storm has torn through Atlantic Canada, with heavy snow and high winds leaving hundreds of thousands without power across the region.
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Weather
Heavy snowfall and high winds are expected across the Island today.
Further snow fall accumulations near 5 cm expected, with winds gusts up to 100 km/h persisting throughout the day then gradually diminish this evening.
Temperatures will remain around 2 C.
A major low-pressure system will remain nearly stationary southeast of Cape Breton today, then move off to the east tonight.
Snow is forecast to continue this morning across the Island, then become mixed with or change over to rain before tapering to showers or flurries this evening.
Additionally, large waves and pounding surf could give elevated water levels along north facing coastal areas today.
Consider postponing non-essential travel until conditions improve. Visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow.
Winter storm warnings are issued when multiple types of severe winter weather are expected to occur together.
For updates, visit Weather.gc.ca.
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Maritime Electric
Tens of thousands of Maritime Electric customers are without power across the province.
Kim Griffin with Maritime Electric said crews have been out since 2:30 a.m. restoring power, and contract crews have been brought in to assist.
Griffin said the combination of high winds and heavy snow are "concerning".
"We’ve had quite a few downed trees so far," she told The Guardian this morning. "We’re still assessing. Customers have been calling us with what they’ve seen. We’ve had some powerlines down across roads that customers notified us about, so we're making sure we get those clear."
Griffin said having customers call in and letting Maritime Electric know what they are seeing has been a big help.
At this time, Griffin said she isn't sure when all power will be restored, but said there are crews in western, central and eastern parts of the province.
To report outages, call 1-800-670-1012.
For updates, visit Maritimeelectric.com.
Charlottetown Airport
There are some flight cancellations and delays to and from the Charlottetown Airport today.
For updates, visit Flypei.com.
Island Waste Management Corporation
CANCELLATIONS FOR NOV. 29 - Collections in the West Prince, eastern and central regions are cancelled for today. The alternate collection is Saturday, Dec. 1.
Collection in all East Prince will be attempted as scheduled today.
Be advised that IWMC's disposal facilities and offices are delaying opening today. Further information to be posted shortly after 9 a.m.
For more information, visit Iwmc.pe.ca.
Schools
There is a system wide shut down for the Public Schools Branch and the French Language School Board today due to the weather.
All Holland College campuses are closed for the day.
UPEI is closed for the day.
College de L’ile is closed for the day.
Grace Christian School Closed for the day
Maritime Christian College closed for the day.
For updates, visit Edu.princeedwardisland.ca/psb.
Northumberland Ferries
ADVISORY: Due to weather conditions forecast by Environment Canada all sailings for Thursday, Nov. 29th, have been cancelled.
For more information, visit Ferries.ca or call 1-800-565-0201.
Confederation Bridge
BRIDGE TRAFFIC RESTRICTIONS: For user safety, the Confederation Bridge has restricted certain classes of vehicles from crossing until the current high wind situation changes.
Restricted classes include:
- Automobiles towing trailers
- Motorcycles
- High-sided vehicles including trucks, tractor trailers, recreational vehicles and buses
For current conditions, visit Confederationbridge.com.