Ferry schedules in upheaval as western Newfoundland readies for storm

Ferry services are cancelling some runs and modifying others Friday as western Newfoundland battens down the hatches ahead of a potentially messy weekend storm.

Labrador Marine announced around 10:20 a.m. Friday it was cancelling all remaining departures from St. Barbe and Blanc Sablon for the MV Apollo in the Strait of Belle Isle. It cited increasing winds and a storm warning.

Marine Atlantic rescheduled four Thursday crossings between Port aux Basques and North Sydney for just before midnight Friday — and then rescheduled them again to around noon Saturday — due to bad weather in the Cabot Strait.

Environment Canada has issued wind — and. in many cases, rainfall — warnings along Newfoundland's entire coastline, with the Channel-Port aux Basques vicinity facing a storm surge warning and dangerous wind gusts in the Wreckhouse area, up to 180 km/h at times until early this afternoon.

"Vehicles are at high risk of being overturned or experience loss of control along exposed roads," reads the wind warning for Wreckhouse.

The RCMP are urging drivers to stay off Route 430 from Daniel's Harbour to Cow Head due to blowing snow, and to keep off the Burgeo Highway due to stormy conditions.

Sections of Labrador are also under winter storm warnings, with between 15 and 20 centimetres of snow expected by Friday evening.