HALIFAX -- Hurricane Teddy maintains as a powerful Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds near 215 km/h Friday afternoon.

Category 4 Hurricane Teddy on satellite imagery

Category 4 Hurricane Teddy on satellite imagery

The storm continues to head northwest and is expected to arrive in the vicinity of Bermuda on late Sunday as a Category 3 or Category 2 hurricane.

Bermuda is being advised that there is a risk of strong winds, storm surge, and heavy rainfall this weekend.

The extended forecast for Hurricane Teddy takes it into the southern marine areas of the Maritimes by early Tuesday morning.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center predicts the earliest reasonable arrival time of tropical storm force winds (sustained 63+ km/h) on the Atlantic coastline of Nova Scotia Tuesday morning.

Much of the Maritimes is contained within the forecast cone for the storm Tuesday into Wednesday. That means that it is highly likely that Teddy takes a path through and into the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

The latest official forecast track

The latest official forecast track from the National Hurricane Center. The next update to this forecast will be at 6 PM ADT.

The intensity of the storm as it passes is one of the more uncertain aspects of the forecast.

Currently Teddy is predicted to be a Category 1 storm, transitioning to a post-tropical storm as it comes through our region. This does not necessarily mean less impactful weather, but rather a change in the physics/structure of the storm.

During a post-tropical transition the storm becomes asymmetrical in shape, gets larger in size, with impacts diffused from the centre but affecting a larger area. There would still be hazards posed by high winds, heavy rainfall, and possible storm surge.

Track zoom 2

Much of the Maritime is encompassed by the forecast cone Tuesday into Wednesday. The cone denotes the area the storm is most likely to take a path through and will narrow in the forecast upon approach.

The forecast details of the hazards posed by the storm require a higher confidence in the exact track/path it will take through. That will come into better focus through the weekend and Monday. There is much still to be determined.

Do we have anything working in our favour? We do. As you will note the prediction is for Teddy to weaken in intensity near and past Bermuda. This occurs as the storm encounters some cooler ocean waters.

There is a very notable drop off in surface water temperatures beginning near the 40th parallel and north to the coastlines of the Maritimes. The forward speed of Teddy is expected to slow as it passes through this area and the longer it takes over cooler waters the more of a weakening influence they will have.

Storm track

Teddy is expected to stir up some relatively cooler ocean waters as it nears Bermuda. The speed of the storm is also forecast to slow as it arrives into the much cooler water near our coastlines. This is expected to result in weakening of the storm upon approach.

We also have days to monitor and prepare for the storm. You should review your storm plans and be sure you have the supplies you need to contend with things like possible power outages and a heavy rain event. It would be a good idea to secure easily wind blown objects by the end of this weekend or Monday.

For updates on Hurricane Teddy's track throughout the weekend, tune into CTV Atlantic, visit our website, and follow Kalin Mitchell on Facebook, and Twitter