Storm Fiona: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will visit the Maritimes on Tuesday

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will travel to the Maritimes on Tuesday to view the extensive damage left behind by post-tropical storm Fiona last weekend.

According to his official schedule, Mr. Trudeau will travel first to Prince Edward Island, specifically to Stanley Bridge, alongside Associate Minister of National Defense Lawrence MacAulay, MP Malpeque, Heath MacDonald, and Charlottetown MP, Sean Casey.

The storm left Stanley Bridge on Saturday, washing out its main route. The outlook for the small town suddenly darkened, mainly due to damage to fishing boats, swept like scale models down the middle of the road by a « storm surge ».

The bridge that gives the town its name was submerged in floodwaters on Saturday morning as Fiona slammed into the area.

The objective of Mr. Trudeau’s visit will of course be to meet with members of the communities affected by the passage of Fiona, which left 90% of residents of Prince Edward Island without electricity at the height of the storm.

Afterwards, the Prime Minister will travel to Nova Scotia, which was also hard hit by the storm. The province was the first to ask the army for help with the cleanup—a request that was quickly accepted by the federal government.

In that province, Mr. Trudeau will meet with members of the communities affected by Fiona in Glace Bay. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser will also be present, as will some local MPs.

Finally, the Prime Minister will visit the Canadian Coast Guard College in Sydney, still in Nova Scotia.

During his first press briefing after the passage of the storm, on Saturday afternoon, Mr. Trudeau had already indicated that he intended to travel to eastern Canada to see the damage, but had specified that he didn’t want to interfere with the first clean-up operations.

“We know that this is an event that has hit people very hard and we will not leave them alone,” Mr. Trudeau had decided.

The Prime Minister had also canceled a planned trip to Japan last weekend due to the passage of the post-tropical storm. It is finally the Minister of Industry François-Philippe Champagne who will represent Canada at the state funeral of the former Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, which will take place on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, in Ottawa, various ministers will give another update on operations underway in the provinces affected by the passage of the storm in the morning on Tuesday.