Monster storm in Central Canada moves to Maritimes

A storm system that dumped more than 45 centimetres of snow in southern Ontario and Quebec as families were attempting to settle in to March school break mode moved to the Maritimes on Sunday, bringing rain, freezing rain and snow.

In New Brunswick, as many as 4,000 people were left without power overnight, but Heather MacLean of New Brunswick Power said crews have been working round the clock, and by Sunday morning, that number was whittled down to about 600.

Outages affected 5,000 customers in southwest Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island.

In Prince Edward Island, 2,500 customers of Maritime Electric had no power. The utility said there was a lot of ice on power lines across the province.

Most flights arriving and departing from Charlottetown, Moncton and Halifax were running on time, but there were some delays and cancellations. Travellers were advised to call ahead.

Flooding was reported in parts of Saint John. A city spokesperson said the Marsh Creek system flooded in several locations and a number of streets were closed.

After a night of heavy and freezing rain in some Maritime towns, roads were slippery.

Some areas of New Brunswick could be hit with 25 centimetres of snow by the time the storm moves out, while others areas will get a mix of snow and freezing rain.

Environment Canada says Nova Scotia can expect more rain on Sunday. The federal agency says the latest winter storm to hit the Maritimes will dump up to 70 millimetres of rain.

Officials are keeping an eye on areas prone to flooding, such as Truro and Oxford, but say the flood risk is minimal because there is little snow and ice on rivers.

Although the storm has moved out of Quebec, hydro crews were working Sunday to restore power to the about 87,000 customers left in the dark overnight. 

By afternoon, 50,000 to 60,000 customers in Quebec City and about 1,000 customers in the Montreal area were without power, the CBC's Leah Hendry reported.

Travellers' March break escapes delayed

Much to the annoyance of families looking to escape the wicked winter, airports reported hundreds of flight delays and cancellations in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa on Saturday.

Although skies cleared by Sunday morning, travellers were still encouraged to check before heading to airports to determine if their flights were on schedule.

Some flights going into Halifax and St. John's from Ontario and Quebec have been cancelled or delayed.

In terms of its size, duration, precipitation and winds, the storm was described by many forecasters as a monster.

The Ottawa and Niagara Falls areas were hardest hit in Ontario on Saturday, with more than 45 centimetres of snow falling since Friday.

Snowfall amounts were said to be near record levels in those cities, as well as Toronto and Montreal.