Tropical Storm Irene Heads North Packing Strong Winds And Rain

Tropical Storm Irene is currently 80 kilometres east of Albany, New York with wind speeds of 95 kilometres per hour travelling north northeast at 43 kilometres an hour.


Tropical storm warnings remain in effect for the fundy coastlines of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
Rainfall warnings remain in effect for most of this province and parts of Quebec while wind warnings are in effect for most of the Maritimes.

The Canadian Hurricane Centre reports Irene's wind field is enormous with Yarmouth, Nova Scotia experiencing a wind gust of 93 kilometres an hour earlier today. Parts of South Western New Brunswick have already been soaked with more than 50 millimetres of rain.

For more informaton on what to expect from Tropical Storm Irene tonight and tomorrow, click here

Irene Update, Tropical Storm Brings High Winds

Hurricane Irene is now Tropical Storm Irene, but forecasters say the storm is still large and brings the threat of high winds to southern NB. 

Chris Fogarty is a meteorologist with the Canadian Hurricane Centre. 

He says heavy wind is expected to whip through Saint John tonight, and the area will see bursts of heavy rain.

Fogarty maintains the midnight hour will be the time to watch. 

He says the wind combined with high tide could cause storm surge or flooding issues.

Fogarty says Irene is not just an overnight event. 

He says winds will continue to blow tomorrow, even if it's under sunny skies.

Irene Weakening, SJ To See Wind

Hurricane Irene continues to weaken as it pounds the mid-Atlantic states.

But the storm has cut power to almost two million homes and businesses between North Carolina and New Jersey.

A rain, wind and tropical storm warning is in effect for the city and surrounding area.

Chris Fogarty is a meteorologist with the Canadian Hurricane Centre and says Saint John will see some of the action.

He says the northwestern part of the province will get the heaviest rainfall, but Saint John and the rest of Southern NB will receive the brunt of the wind.

Fogarty says Saint John could also face surge flooding if the worst of the wind arrives just after midnight, coinciding with high tide.

Fish Feeding Down To A Science

An automated feeder making life easier for salmon farmers at the Charlie Cove fish farm near St. Andrew's. 

Chuck Brown with Cooke Aquaculture says an underwater camera allows feed technicians to see what's going on beneath the surface. 

He says they're trained to identify signs, like the fish slowing down, to know when to stop.

Brown says the technology means farmers waste less feed in the long run and save money, and it also means there's no excess in the environment.

Rothesay Gets Low-Cost "IOU"

Rothesay will save 100 thousand dollars in interest payments thanks to a low-cost loan from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

Mayor Bill Bishop tells CHSJ News the 3.5 million dollar loan is being used to upgrade the town's drinking water supply. 

It will see water connected to part of K-Park and a section of vacant land that could supply water to roughly 700 new homes.

Bishop says the project is practically done, but the low-cost loan will save the town money while paying off the bill.

Stem Cell Lab On The Way

The Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation hopes to have their new stem cell lab up and running in 6 months time.

Foundation President and CEO Tim Cameron tells CHSJ News their campaign to raise 680 thousand dollars is unprecedented in that the majority of donations have been from individuals. 

He says about 70 per cent of the money they've raised so far has been from individuals as opposed to corporations.

Cameron says the Foundation had a much better mail campaign this year than normal as well.

He says despite being about 150 thousand dollars short of their goal, some of the equipment for the new lab has already been ordered.

Liberals Not Sole Cause Of Debt, Boudreau Says

Interim Liberal Leader Victor Boudreau says the increase of the provincial debt by a billion dollars cannot be placed solely on the shoulders of the former Graham government.

He tells CHSJ News they got hit by the worst financial crisis in 70 years, and the Liberal government was spending money in order to stimulate the economy, much like the federal government.

He says a Liberal government would have balanced the books by growing the economy and managing spending.

But he says the Alward government acts as if the economy is non-existent.

Tree Vandals in Rothesay

Someone with a not-so-green thumb uprooting two-year-old trees in Rothesay.

Constable Henderson tells CHSJ News the trees line the Hampton Road near Rothesay High School.

She says police found one of them snapped in two and another completely uprooted on the sidewalk.

Henderson says she doesn't know who did it but reckons it wasn't the weather.

She says the town has indicated it will cost 800 dollars to replace each tree.

Police sticking the uprooted one back in the ground in hopes will come back on its own.