Newfoundland bracing for significant storm

An area of low pressure will approach Newfoundland overnight and will bring snow, rain, strong winds, and coastal flooding to portions of the province.

Snow is expected to begin over eastern Newfoundland early Sunday morning and spread northwestward across the island through the day. The heaviest snow is expected to fall in the Green Bay-White Bay and Northern Peninsula East areas. In these areas, 20 to 30 cm is expected from Sunday morning until Monday morning.

On the Avalon Peninsula, precipitation tonight will start as snow but will quickly change to rain. Overnight to Sunday night 30 to 50 mm is expected.

Winds will intensify tonight for the Island and continue to be strong until Monday. Gusts on the Avalon Peninsula are expected to reach 110 km/h. On the Burin Peninsula and south coast, gusts to 100 km/h are expected, and winds will gust to 90 km/h for interior sections of the Island. On the west coast, gusts between 80 and 100 km/h are possible. Power outages are likely to occur.

For coastal areas from Ferryland to White Bay, moderate storm surge, very large waves, and higher than normal water levels are expected. Sunday morning until Monday morning waves could reach 6 to 8 metres high. Flooding is possible along the coastline and coastal erosion is possible in vulnerable areas.