Major Hurricane Fiona, located east of the Bahamas is moving north at 7 kts with max winds now at 115 kts and significant wave heights to 38 feet (11.6 meters). Hurricane force winds extend outward 40 nm to the NE and 20 nm to the SW. During the next couple of days, Fiona will continue over warm ocean waters so some additional strengthening could occur.
Hurricane conditions are possible, and tropical storm conditions are expected, on Bermuda by late Thursday. Thereafter Fiona will start to transition into an extratropical hurricane force storm that will affect parts of Atlantic Canada late Friday and Saturday.
I was just looking at the Windy.com forecast maps for Fiona and that 100+ knot wind field for Friday PM into Saturday is absurdly large. The Canadian Maritimes are in for one hell of a ride
Yup. Not looking forward to the next week or so. Sitting smack in the centre of the track. At least I am a few miles from the coast with topography on my side.
Halifax? I have ties to Lunenburg. The projected path shows it passing slightly to the east toward Halifax.
The graphic is for possible wind gusts and the sustained wind field would be less, but still strong (max about 100 kts). The area of strong winds will be expanding as Fiona will be transitioning to an extratropical storm.
8am EDT Saturday Forecast
Update: Fiona is forecast to move across eastern Nova Scotia Saturday as an extratropical hurricane force storm with max winds of 80 kts and significant wave heights to 15 meters (49 feet). The risk for encountering hurricane force winds at Sydney is 44% and for Sable Island 51%.
1 Like
Here’s what Hurricane Fiona’s surf looked like, from atop a 50-foot wave
WAPO:
At the heart of Category 4 Hurricane Fiona, a robotic surfboard managed to brave intensifying ocean swells and strengthening winds to capture rare footage from inside the hurricane.
Video from the ocean drone, driven by scientists from the company Saildrone and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, captured about 360 miles southeast of Bermuda, depicts haunting blue water and monstrous waves, serenaded by howling winds. Torrential rain and ominous sea spray are seen swirling as the vehicle sways and lunges atop the ocean’s turbulent surface.
The Saildrone Explorer SD 1078 was in the best position to capture the never-before-seen footage from inside Fiona, the first Category 4 hurricane of the year, with wave heights of near 50 feet and winds over 100 mph on Thursday.
2 Likes
Major Hurricane Fiona is pulling away from Bermuda and racing toward Atlantic Canada with max winds to 115 kts and significant wave heights up to 18.5 meters (over 60 feet)! The Bermuda Weather Service reported that there were wind gusts up to 100 kt on the island early this morning.
Fiona is moving very quickly to the northeast at about 30 kt. The center of Fiona is expected to make landfall in Atlantic Canada late tonight or early Saturday, but wind, rain, and surge impacts will begin well before that time given the large size of the hurricane.
1 Like