Via Vox:
Hurricane Dorian strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane Saturday afternoon as it began moving past the coast of Maine towards the east coast of Canada with maximum sustained wind speeds of 100 mph.
The catastrophic storm has left more than 43 people dead in the Bahamas and at least five people dead in the US. As many as 70,000 people have been left homeless due to the storm in the Bahamas, and roughly 800 people are stranded on an island off the coast of North Carolina, cut off by flooding. Thousands more across the US’ eastern seaboard are without power, and at least 200,000 residents of the Canadian Maritimes have lost power as well.
While Dorian is expected to weaken to a post-tropical cyclone in the next 24 hours, scientists believe it will maintain hurricane-force strength until Sunday. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has warned residents of Nova Scotia and western Newfoundland to prepare for impact as the storm sweeps north over the next several hours, with hurricane-force winds near 100 miles per hour extending outward up to 115 miles.
Areas of Maine through northeastern Canada are under a tropical storm warning, meaning they should expect storm conditions, including heavy wind and rain, within 12 hours. Prince Edward Island and the Magdalen Islands are under hurricane watch, meaning hurricane conditions are possible there as well.