Cape Breton Regional Municipality requests further cleanup assistance

Post-tropical storm Fiona has left lasting scars on many Cape Bretoners, especially those who have faced destruction of their homes.

"It scared the living daylights out of me. I mean, between 5 and 5:30, the wind was just crazy," said resident Todd Dezagiacomo.

Wind gusts were so strong it left a massive hole in his roof. Being without power or a phone line, he says he is struggling to repair it.

"I'm a pensioner too. I've been retired the last couple of years, so I can use any help I can get," he added.

Across town, Alex Campbell's backyard has been left a mess, and his garage is a total loss.

"How do you replace that? We can't get insurance on our houses, we can’t afford it," said Campbell.

He says he's on his fourth day without power, and the losses are adding up as the food in his freezer has spoiled.

"There's no food left in them, it's all melting. You have to fire it away. There's no hot water to wash, you can't even get a shower," he said.

His neighbor Alex Macintyre is in the same boat.

"I was trying to go skimpy on the food, so I wouldn't lose too much. I bought a lot of canned food, but I still lost about $90 worth of food you store in the fridge, it's just no good at all," said Macintyre.

Nova Scotia Power says damage in Cape Breton is primarily due to hundreds of broken poles and downed lines from the fallen trees.

More than 65,000 customers have been affected in the area, with some restoration times not until the middle of next week.

"We know how many people are working to restore our community," said Cape Breton Regional Municipality Mayor Amanda McDougall.

She says she has been appealing to provincial and federal governments for further assistance.

"We need more support by the way of troops on the ground. We need the authorization and physical power to help remove major amounts of debris from their properties. We need access to fuel and power," she said.

Liberal MLA Fred Tilley is calling for better accommodations for those living in Sydney Mines and on the Northside.

"Small investments from government right now could go a long way to improve the safety of all the residents of Cape Breton for sure," said Tilley.