Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Newfoundland hammered by hurricane

Not only was a born in Canada, I spent a formative two months as a medical student in St. Anthony Newfoundland.

So if there'd been any US coverage, I'd have noticed Newfoundland was hammered by Hurricane Igor a week ago ...
Hurricane Igor (2010) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

... Significant wind and flooding damage was reported across much of the island of Newfoundland as Igor passed just to the east. Many communities had to declare a state of emergency and some parts of the community of Clarenville were evacuated due to flooding. 238 mm (9.37 inches) of rain fell on the Burin Peninsula at St. Lawrence, making Hurricane Igor at least the third wettest tropical cyclone to be recorded in Canada; roads and bridges were completely washed away as well.[30] The Bonavista Peninsula and Avalon Peninsula were also hard hit, with severe flooding in many communities in those areas as well. Power outages were also reported in many communities in eastern Newfoundland as a result of the strong winds.[31] Preliminary assessments place losses in Newfoundland well over $100 million.[32] One person is dead from Random Island after reportedly being swept out to sea...
There are only 480,000 people in Newfoundland, and it is as poor as it is beautiful. Poor by Canadian standards, that is.  100 million is a lot of damage there.

The lead article in The Telegram today is a convenience store robbery. So either they're recovering well, or St John's leading newspaper is only a facade. I suspect both are true. Newfies are a tough crowd though, a hurricane might not really register.

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