Grand Bay-Westfield man recalls moment 4 trees fell in his yard during wind storm
Peak wind speed of 104 km/h recorded at Saint John Airport Monday
Greg Hall has seen his fair share of high winds and tropical storms. But the results of Monday's wind and rain still came as a surprise to him.
The warm December storm blew down four large trees in the Grand Bay-Westfield resident's yard.
"These trees were just bending like palm trees, just whipping around. I've never seen anything like it," he said.
Hall said as the day went on, the winds just seemed to get worse.
Monday's unseasonable weather brought extremely high winds and caused power outages across the region.
Clayton Beaton, a spokesperson for N.B. Power, said at the peak on Monday, more than 32,000 customers were impacted, mostly because of high winds.
By Tuesday afternoon, the number was down to about 9,500 customers.
Tony Gautreau, fire chief and emergency management response director for Grand Bay-Westfield, told CBC's Shift on Tuesday that most residents had their power back, but those that don't and cannot stay at home overnight should call the town office for help.
A warming and charging centre was also set up at the town hall, he said, and will be open until 8 p.m.
According to Environment Canada, a peak wind speed of 104 km/h was recorded at the Saint John Airport on Monday, the highest in the province.
Hall said that along with the winds that toppled trees in his yard, the rain also made its way into his log home.
"It was like pressure washing the house. It was astonishing.… The water was getting pressed right through the joints of the logs," he said.
Hall said the rest of his neighbourhood didn't fare much better. He said before his own property was affected, he heard fire truck sirens outside, and looked out to see downed trees in some of his neighbours' yards.
That was when he realized that it was "getting close to home," and he started recording a video.
He saw two trees come down on the side of his yard. Only a few minutes later, he heard loud booming, "like a couple of dump trucks hitting the house."
Following the sound, he found two big trees down across the front of the house, hitting the roof but just missing the front window.
Hall said one of the trees broke the stone wall in his backyard, but he still has to fully assess the damage to the home and property.
"It looks like we're gonna have a chainsaw party today, with some friends coming in to clean up the mess."
Hall wasn't the only resident to face the wrath of the high winds.
In Saint John on Monday, the roof blew off a four-floor apartment building on Britain Street. The Red Cross was on the scene Monday night and tenants spent the night in a hotel.
A City of Saint John spokesperson sent a statement on Tuesday, attributed to fire Chief Kevin Clifford. The statement said the damage to the roof allowed water to pour into the building, "exposing some electrical infrastructure to the heavy rainfall."
An assessment was completed and "we have determined that, with respect to the electrical infrastructure, the building is no longer in a compromised state."
The statement said contractors are still moving equipment and materials and working to repair the roof, and the property owner will tell tenants when it is safe to return.
Other areas faced some localized flooding Monday, with raised water levels in some places.
The most precipitation was recorded in Mechanic Settlement, a community in Kings County on Route 114, at 88 mm.
Two regions also set temperature records, with many central and southern areas hitting double-digits.
The Doaktown area set a new record of 15.2 C, up 0.2 from the previous record set in 1966. The Saint John area also surpassed a 1969 record of 13.9 C, reaching 14.6 C.
The highest temperature recorded in the province Monday, according to Environment Canada, was in Sussex at 17 C.
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With files from Information Morning Saint John