Tropical Storm Earl Rakes Nova Scotia
Los Angeles Times — September 4, 2010 — Tropical Storm Earl is raking Nova Scotia, with wind increasing on Prince Edward Island.
It is about 30 miles south of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and is moving northeast at 40 mph
A hurricane watch is in effect for Porters Lake to Piont Tupper, with a tropical storm warning in effect for Nova Scotia from Fort Lawrence to Margaretsville; Medway Harbour around the east and north side of Nova Scotia to Tidnish; the eastern portion of Prince Edward Island from Victoria to Lower Darnley; and the Magadalen Islands.
Tropical storm conditions are still spreading over eastern Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island and will spread over a large portion of the Canadian Maritimes later Saturday.
The tropical storm is expected to produce rainfall accumulations of 1 to 3 inches over New Brunstick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island with isolated amounts of 5 inches possible.
Gaston shows signs of organization. Shower and thunderstorm activity associated with the remnants of Gaston are conducive to redevelopment of the system into a tropical depression at any time. There is an 80 percent chance the system could become a tropical cyclone again during the next 48 hours as it moves westward about 10 mph.
Meanwhile, a large area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico is associated with a surface trough. Some development is possible if it remains over water, with a 30 percent chance the system could become a tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours as it moves northwestward at 5 mph to 10 mph.
11 a.m. update:
Tropical Storm Earl made landfall near Western Head, Nova Scotia, around 10 a.m., with severe tropical storm conditions affecting a large portion of the province.
It is about 50 miles west-southwest of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph.
Tropical conditions are spreading over Nova Scotia and will spread over a large portion of the Canadian Maritimes later Saturday.
The storm surge will lead to rising water levels along the southern coast of Nova Scotia.
It currently is moving northeastward at 36 mph.
The center is located inland near latitude 44.3 North, longitude 64.5 West.
8:00 a.m. update:
Tropical Storm Earl contines to have maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and is still moving northeast at 30 mph.
Its location is latitude 42.9 North and 65.8 West.
Earl is about 40 miles south of Cape Sable Nova Scotia.
Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 205 miles from the center.
A tropical storm warning has been discontinued for Maine from Stonington to Eastport. The hurricane watch for Nova Scotia from Digby to Port Maitland has been discontinued as well.
A hurricane watch is in effect for Nova Scotia from Port Maitland to Point Tupper. A tropical storm warning is in effect for the entire coast of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick from the Fundy National Park Eastward to Fort Lawrence and from Shediac to Tidnish, and the Magdalen Islands.
A tropical storm watch is in effect for Point Escuminac to Shediac New Brunswick.
Shower and thunderstorm activities associated with the remnants of Gaston continue to show signs of organization and conditions are conducive for redevelopment into a tropical depression later Saturday. There is 70 percent chance it could become a tropical cyclone again during the next 48 hours as it moves westward at about 10 mph.
An elongated area of low pressure located between the west coast of Africa and the Cape Verde Islands has become less organized, but could develop during the next few days. There is a 20 percent chance it could become a tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours as it moves northwestward at nearly 10 mph.
An area of disturbed weather continues to move over the Southern Bay of Campache. There is a 20 percent chance of development into a tropical cyclone over the next 48 hours as it moves northwestward at 5 mph to 10 mph.
Development would be slow due to its proximity to land.
5 a.m. update:
Tropical Storm Earl is about 145 miles southwest of Cape Sable Nova Scotia and 160 miles east of Nantucket, Mass., with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph.
It currently is moving northeast at 30 mph.
The tropical storm warning has been discontinued for Massachusetts and adjacent islands, but a storm watch remains in effect for Nova Scotia from Ecum Secum westward to Digby.
A tropical storm watch is in effect for Stonington, Maine, to Eastport, Maine, and the entire coast of Nova Scotia; Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick from the U.S.-Canada border eastward to Fort Lawrence and from Shediac to Tidnish; and the Magdalen Islands.
At 5 a.m., the center of Tropical Storm Earl was near latitude 41.7 North, longitude 67.1 West.
Storm surge water levels could rise as much as 1 to 3 feet above ground level along the downeast coast of Maine and above normal levels along the southern coast of Nova Scotia.
Large swells from Earl will continue to affect the east coast from New Jersey northward on Saturday and likely will cause dangerous surf conditions and rip currents.
The remnant low of Gaston is about 1,150 miles east of the Leeward Islands and is moving westward around 10 mph. Conditions are conducive for gradual development if thunderstorms continue to form near the center.
There is a 70 percent chance it could become a tropical cyclone again during the next 48 hours.
The remnant circulation of Tropical Storm Fiona is about 90 miles southeast of Bermuda. Conditions aren’t favorable for regeneration. There is nearly a zero chance of it becoming a tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours as it moves northeastward at 15 mph to 20 mph.
Hurricane Earl was downgraded to a tropical storm late Friday as it continued its approach to Cape Cod, Mass.
“The good news on Earl is it has been steadily weakening, maybe even a little quicker than forecast,” said Bill Read, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami-Dade County.
Still, the system is expected to rough up eastern Massachusetts as well as much of the Northeast coast with up to 5 inches of rain, gusts up to 70 mph and pounding waves.
At 2 a.m., Earl was 105 miles east-southeast of Nantucket, Mass., racing northeast at 30 mph with sustained winds of 70 mph. Earl was expected to pass offshore of Cape Cod overnight and reach Nova Scotia, Canada, as a medium-size tropical storm on Saturday.
Although Earl is losing its punch, Nantucket Police Chief William Pittman warned island residents not to take the storm lightly, saying it could be stronger than the nor’easters they’re used to seeing.
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick urged residents not to panic. Many seemed to be following his advice on Friday.
Packing winds of 75 mph, the storm swirled up the Eastern Seaboard on Friday after sideswiping North Carolina’s Outer Banks, where it caused flooding but no injuries and little damage.
The storm passed wide of New York City, Long Island and the rest of the mid-Atlantic region, but brought rain and high winds as it passed just off Cape Cod, Nantucket Island and Martha’s Vineyard late Friday night.
Vacationers on Nantucket pulled boats from the water and canceled Labor Day weekend reservations. Swimmers in New England were warned to stay out of the water — or off the beach altogether — because of the danger of getting swept away by high waves.
Airlines canceled dozens of flights into New England, and Amtrak suspended train service between New York and Boston.
No large-scale evacuations were ordered for Cape Cod, where fishermen and other hardy year-round residents have been dealing with gusty nor’easters for generations.
Earlier Friday, in downtown Chatham, a fishing village at Cape Cod’s eastern edge, tourists strolled Main Street’s bookstores, cafes and ice cream parlors. Others walked on a nearby beach, largely unconcerned about the coming storm.
In Barnstable, Ellen McDonough, of Boston, and a friend didn’t let Earl cancel their plans for a weekend getaway to Nantucket.
“It’s not a three-foot snow storm,” she said while waiting for a ferry to the island. “I think us New Englanders are tough.”
Scott Thomas, president of the Nantucket Island Chamber of Commerce, said island residents were taking the storm in stride.
“We kind of roll with the punches out here; it’s not a huge deal for us,” he said.
Early on Friday, Earl’s core came within 85 miles of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, causing no injuries and little damage. No hurricane-force winds reached the vacation area, forecasters said.
Because Earl initially had been forecast to potentially approach the Outer Banks with devastating Category 4 power, officials had urged about 35,000 visitors and residents to evacuate. Hundreds chose to remain and hunker down in boarded-up homes.
Meanwhile, at 11 p.m., Tropical Depression Fiona was 60 miles south of Bermuda, moving northeast at 14 mph with sustained winds of 30 mph. It was expected to approach the island nation early Saturday.
No further advisories are planned for Fiona.
