St. Andrews, N.B., residents survey storm surge damage, prepare for similar weekend threat

The threat of a storm surge this weekend, similar to what crashed upon shore just days ago in St. Andrews, N.B., has seaside residents on edge.

“It was pretty dramatic on Wednesday,” said Jeffrey Irving, who captured video of waves crashing into the town’s Market Square boardwalk and properties near Pendlebury Lighthouse. 

“It was just the right combination of wind, high tide,” said Irving.

Saturday’s forecast is calling for more of the same.

CTV Atlantic meteorologist Kalin Mitchell said peak wind gusts could reach around 90 km/h along the coast between Saturday afternoon and Saturday evening. The storm will arrive at near high astronomical tides. Due to large waves and gusty wind, water levels during Saturday afternoon’s high tide could surpass the usual mark.

High tide in St. Andrews on Saturday afternoon is set to hit 7.6 metres at 1:14 p.m.

“If the winds hit what they potentially can, unfortunately this next storm could have even more impact,” said St. Andrews Mayor Brad Henderson on Friday, noting how Wednesday’s storm caused local flooding, erosion, and road damage.

Staff from Parks Canada examined storm surge damage around the St. Andrews Blockhouse site on Friday, caused by Wednesday’s storm as well as severe weather in mid-December.

Wednesday’s storm surge led to significant damage on the road leading from St. Andrews to Ministers Island.

“There are some houses here in town that are multi-million dollar homes and they were surrounded by water the other day, and that’s a bit of a scary proposition for those homeowners,” said David Welch, who operated a whale watching company on Passamaquoddy Bay for two decades. “What we’ve seen this winter so far, and what is potentially coming (Saturday) is pretty well unprecedented as far as its magnitude.”

“We could see the wharf underwater for short periods of time.”

The St. Andrews wharf will be closed on Saturday afternoon.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Kalin Mitchell.

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