Windy weather could mean more power woes for Nova Scotians

Another winter storm has led to fresh power outages in Nova Scotia as rain and strong winds on Tuesday batter trees and power lines still encased in ice from last week's freezing rain.

The problems come as most of the remaining 2,500 Nova Scotia Power customers who were still without electricity following Friday's ice storm finally had their power restored on Tuesday afternoon.

The latest blast of strong winds and rain or freezing has caused a swath of new outages, mostly affecting customers northeast of New Germany, north of Halifax near Grand Lake and across Cape Breton.

The rain, which may be heavy at times, combined with melting snow, will bring a risk of localized flooding, especially along the Atlantic coastline where the most rain is expected to fall, said CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon.

Emergency officials recommend having enough supplies on hand to last your household at least 72 hours. 

Cape Breton could also see some snow, possibly mixing with freezing rain and ice pellets, said CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin.

"The system is moving in and out but there will be areas of freezing rain and ice pellets that will last several hours as the rain/snow line moves north and then retreats southward," she said.

Many trees and power lines are still encased in ice and winds expected to gust between 50 and 70 km/h could mean even more broken limbs and outages.

Snoddon said he was hoping the warmer temperatures overnight and Tuesday morning might be enough to melt some of the ice before the strongest winds ramp up on Tuesday, with winds gusting between 40 and 50 km/h.

Simpkin said the strongest winds will be felt in Guysborough County and Cape Breton and will arrive Tuesday afternoon with gusts between 50 and 70 km/h, and as high as 90 km/h in parts of Cape Breton. Les Suêtes winds could reach 150 km/h from Margaree Harbour to Bay St. Lawrence Tuesday afternoon and evening.

The rain will likely turn to snow Tuesday night, said Simpkin, with periods of ice pellets and freezing rain before changing back to snow into Wednesday.

"Areas where there will be melting today, will freeze hard overnight. Icy conditions are expected," she said.