Harvest cancels Saturday shows as Lee nears
Government officials urge people to stay home once storm reaches New Brunswick this weekend; everyone advised to have disaster-readiness kits on hand
The organizers of the Harvest Music Festival have made the decision they dreaded: they’ve cancelled Saturday shows in light of hurricane Lee's expected impact on the area this weekend.
"Harvest is cancelling Saturday music programming, based on the current forecast for very high winds and heavy rain, and NB EMO's advice for New Brunswickers to stay home tomorrow," the festival wrote on social media just after 4 p.m. Friday.
"We are making this decision with heavy hearts and deep appreciation for our artists, our incredible audiences, loyal volunteers, and valued suppliers and sponsors. The safety of our people is our greatest concern."
It noted all shows set for Saturday - including free and ticketed shows at the many venues will not take place.
"We are working on next steps with respect to your tickets and passes and will have an update on this next week," the festival wrote on Facebook.
Friday night shows are going ahead as scheduled.
Fredericton fire Chief Dwayne Killingbeck, who also serves as the City of Fredericton’s head of emergency measures, briefed reporters over the lunch hour Friday on the city’s preparations.
Firefighters, emergency measures operations and other staff are prepared for the weekend weather, he said, and will be assisting with cleanup if need be.
The city will open reception centres in the event of power outages, Killingbeck said, noting they’ll likely be at the usual spots, such as the Grant-Harvey Centre and Willie O’Ree Place.
Heavy equipment will be deployed to assist in the event of major cleanup requirements, he said, noting it was decided that it would likely be safer in potentially hazardous conditions.
The chief said emergency information for Fredericton will be available on the Voyent Alert! App available for smartphones.
Emergency officials will monitor conditions closely, he said, and if the need arises, they could declare a state of emergency if it’s required.
Like many public officials haven Killingbeck advised people to have a storm readiness kit on hand with 72 hours of supplies and to remain at home.
“Stay off the streets,” he said, noting conditions could get dangerous and if people put themselves at risk, they’ll also be putting first responders at risk should they need to be dispatched to assist.
Kyle Leavitt, executive director of New Brunswick’s Emergency Measures Organization, mirrored those comments in a Friday afternoon news conference.
“Once the storm starts, please stay at home,” he said. “Do the smart thing. Stay home and follow the storm online.”
He said Lee is expected to make landfall in the Maritimes later in the day Saturday and could bring winds gusting up to 120 kilometres per hour and rainfall amounting to as much as 120 millimetres.
Leavitt said people should be making preparations Friday for Saturday’s storm. Those with generators should check and test them, he said, and those who just bought new generators should familiarize themselves with them.
Public Safety Minister Kris Austin said people shouldn’t fall into the trap of thinking the storm isn’t a serious one in their area.
“Do not put yourself in danger by heading to the coastline … Now is not the time to sightsee,” he said.
“I think it’s very important that we don’t underestimate what this could be.”
People in the Maritimes have seen the devastating effects of such storms with Fiona last fall and with post-tropical storm Arthur, he said.
Arthur felled trees all over Fredericton in July 2014 and knocked out power to some capital residents for up to two weeks, Austin said.
Nicole Poirier, vice-president of operations with NB Power, said customers will undoubtedly lose service due to the storm.
“We are anticipating outages and are ready to respond,” she said at the province’s Friday news conference.
With trees in full foliage and the ground saturated with water, Poirier said, conditions make it likely trees will fall, given the expected weather.
The utility also has arborists at the ready to deal with that, she said.
The most important thing people can do with regard to power loss, Poirier said, is to report outages as soon as possible, either through the nbpower.com website or by calling 1-800-442-4424.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.