Storm roundup: Businesses and homes across NL suffer after high winds

High winds raged across NL on Jan. 12, destroying some buildings and leaving thousands of people without power overnight.

Although the wind is lower today, nearly 12,000 customers remained without power this morning — in some cases, this means entire communities.

As of 10:18 a.m., four central communities are without power, according to Newfoundland Power — Beachside, Petit Forte, Monkstown, and South East Bight — as well as the northern communities of Cooks Harbour and St. Anthony.

Meanwhile, NL Power is reporting outages on the Avalon and surrounding areas, many affecting between 200 and 1,000 residents.

The worst hit on the entire island in terms of power outages are various Placentia neighbourhoods, including Dunville, which is affecting more than 1,000 residents.

Outside the Avalon and nearby areas, Point au Mal-Fox Island River region near Stephenville is also seeing a minor outage affecting fewer than 200 residents.

Serious structural damage

Apart from power loss, structural damage has occurred across the province.

Matt Mesluk spotted a damaged shack outside Kents Building Supplies on Stavanger Drive.

T-shirt company In The Box Media owner Robert King is currently in Calgary on business, and was sent the bad news: his company building suffered a lot of damage from the high winds, leaving the entire business exposed.

“If that rain comes, we’re screwed,” said King. “I’m gonna lose half a million easy. If the rain really comes down, if we get downfall, the rain is gonna come downstairs too, and that’s another half. I’ve got over a million dollars worth of equipment.”

A transport truck was blown off the road between Deer Lake and Pasadena, and a large tree blew over, blocking the road, in Grand Falls-Windsor.

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Some of the most serious damage, however, was in Port aux Basques, where roof blews off the Bruce II Sports Centre.

In a social media post, the town council said it recognized how much meaning the arena held for residents.

“For many people, it’s more than just a facility — it’s where our kids play, volunteers give their time, teams come together, and countless community memories are made,” council said via a Facebook post shortly after the incident.

“The town has been in contact with our insurance provider, and arrangements are already in place for a crew to be on site tomorrow to assess the damage and begin moving repairs forward. This is a positive step.

“Full assessments are still ongoing, and safety remains the priority, so the building will remain closed until inspections are complete.

“We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding while we work through this, and we’ll continue to share confirmed updates as they become available.”

Tree, house damage

In Conception Bay South, paneling was ripped off the side of a house as well as a building, another house suffered damage to its deck, a tree was uprooted, and a utility pole and power lines sit atop and in front of a school bus.

Meanwhile, in the Goulds, a greenhouse was crushed by a tree, while another house saw a tree uprooted and lost some of its paneling.

In Carbonear, a tree fell onto a house and required a boom truck to remove it, while another home saw a tree uprooted and fall onto a fence in the yard.

In Torbay, a fallen tree blocked a road.

In English Harbour West, a wheel chair ramp blew away and landed in a residential pool. Another home in the area saw portions of its patio damaged or destroyed.

“Highest winds anyone has ever seen around here,” Katie Fiander McCabe said on Facebook.

On the Conception Bay highway in Seal Cove, a home that relied on a separate set of stairs for its main door saw the stairs move to the other side of the driveway.

“I saw this on my way to work,” wrote local Tracey O’Leary-Fewer. “I hope they look before they step out!”

In Grates Cove, in the north end of the Bay de Verde Peninsula, resident Candace Meadus saw her greenhouse take severe wind damage.

On the route 70 into Conception Bay North, a waterfall was spotted going in reverse.

According to wind readings taken at the St. John’s airport Monday evening, gusts topped 140 kilometres per hour.

Sean Ridgeley is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter.