They say rain is good luck on your wedding day, but what about a hurricane?
That’s the question many Maritime couples are facing as they prepare to tie the knot while Hurricane Dorian moves into the region on Saturday.
The storm has prompted many couples to rearrange photographers, caterers, and even venues, while others are changing the date altogether.
Bride-to-be Kelsey Richardson says she anticipated some issues would arise when she started planning her wedding in St. Margaret’s Bay, N.S., a year ago, but she never imagined a hurricane would force her to change her plans.
“I really can’t put it into words. It’s been very overwhelming, to be honest,” says Richardson.
“It’s stressful enough trying to plan for a wedding, getting everything done and tucked away, and then let alone a hurricane come on your wedding day.”
Richardson decided to bump her outdoor ceremony to Sunday, and she is postponing her wedding reception altogether, after the caterer backed out due to safety concerns.
“I thought about cancelling completely and throwing in the towel, but with how accommodating all the vendors have been, I’m still going through with it,” she says.
Wedding planner Karla Cordova says, while some couples may lose money due to the storm, many vendors are understanding when it comes to Mother Nature.
She and DJ Mike Brooks say many couples are making alternative arrangements to deal with Dorian’s heavy rainfall, strong wind gusts, and possible power outages.
“This weekend is a little more scarier, so to be prepared, tarps, bungee cords, in fact, little battery pack power backup, but I just got an email from one of our brides this weekend, and they’re renting a full-powered generator,” says Brooks.
“We’ve had several calls for new clients inquiring for rentals for a Plan B, which is also affecting us a little bit in here, because now we have, our preparation team has to be running like crazy to get all the items that wasn’t originally planned,” says Cordova.
Soon-to-be newlyweds Brittany Ryan and Joe Richard are tying the knot Saturday at the Prince George Hotel in downtown Halifax. They had hoped to be married on the deck of the hotel, but now they plan to move the ceremony inside.
Many of their guests are coming from away and the couple is crossing their fingers that everyone makes it to Halifax safely.
“We have some friends coming from Ontario and B.C. so I think the flights might be challenged, but thankfully most of them planned to come a few days early to check out the city and where we went to school,” says Richard.
He and Ryan say they are looking forward to celebrating their big day with loved ones and are trying to focus on each other -- and not the weather.
“At the end of the day, all that matters is that she says ‘I do,’” says Richard. “It doesn’t really matter what the weather is all about.”
With files from CTV Atlantic's Suzette Belliveau
