Municipal and provincial road crews took advantage of Wednesday’s “calm before the storm” to gear up and prep equipment for Wednesday’s snowfall.
Trevor Harie of Halifax Public Works says his team is ready for whatever Mother Nature has in store.
“This one is going to present three main challenges,” he says. “We're going to have some snow, and depending on where you are inland, it's going to bring some rain. And then we're going to have some really high winds.”
That means everyone across the province is preparing for just about anything.
Lane Farguson, spokesperson for the Halifax Port Authority, says the port will be communicating with crews both on and off ships to ensure they have the most up-to-date information.
“We're taking a look at our equipment right now on the properties that are under the Halifax Port Authority and making sure that equipment that can be moved back from the water's edge and that everything else is either secured or tied down,” says Farguson.
Bay Ferries has cancelled both scheduled sailings from Digby and Saint John on Thursday in light of the incoming storm. Marine Atlantic has moved its Thursday departures to Friday, weather permitting.
The Halifax Regional Muncipality has already closed the Public Gardens for Thursday.
Wednesday marked the first day of school of 2018 for the Halifax Regional School Board. Spokesperson Dog Hadley says at this point, it’s hard to say whether classes will be cancelled.
“We really don't know what's going to happen until it actually happens,” Hadley says. “We're going to be tracking it very closely through the night.”
The anticipated winds of over 100 km/h in some areas have the many tens of thousands of Maritimers living along the coast to do what they can to prevent the damage.
The Christmas wind storm left construction crews with a lot of work to do, and the pressure was on to finish before Thursday.
“When your job is half done and the wind is coming in, it's a lot easier for the siding and everything else to blow off," says contractor Brockley Hass.
High tides and high winds equal high water along coastal areas, and that's exactly the recipe that those living in Eastern Passage were preparing for on Wednesday.
“We're taking all the lobsters, other than the stuff that's in the tank, putting them in crates, and that way if the power goes out we can take them from the store and put them in the boat,” says lobster retailer Victoria Jackson.
Folks who live and work near the coast are urged to keep a watchful eye on the water as the storm moves in.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Bruce Frisko and Laura Brown.
