Tropical Storm Philippe could bring rain, heavy winds to New England, Canada

Tropical Storm Philippe is expected to head toward New England and Atlantic Canada this weekend, brining rain and heavy winds.

After drenching Bermuda and parts of the Virgin Islands, the storm is expected to move northward and strengthen as it moves in the jet stream. The National Weather Service predicted Philippe will make its way north, reaching the coast of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and eastern Maine by Saturday night.

Heavy rain will begin in the area Saturday with maximum winds near 50 mph. It’s expected to be downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone late Saturday night.

“Regardless of Philippe’s intensity or structure, interests in those areas should be prepared for the possibility of strong winds and heavy rainfalls,” the National Hurricane Center said.

Philippe is a large storm, extending up to 230 miles from its center. The storm made landfall in Bermuda earlier this week, downing power lines and causing closures of schools and businesses.

Philippe has set a record, The Washington Post reported. According to Philip Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University, Philippe is the longest-lived Atlantic storm never to have peak winds exceed 50 mph.

After it passes Bermuda, the storm is expected to intensify and follow a very similar path to that of Tropical Cyclone Lee. Lee brought high winds and power outages after making landfall in mid-September. It flooded coastal roads, knocked down power lines and trees and left more than 95,000 homes without power.

Parts of the Northeast have experienced extreme weather for much of the last month. Two communities declared a state of emergency after nearly 10 inches of rain fell in six hours in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. New York City experienced three inches of rain in four hours and declared a state of emergency last week after extreme flooding closed roads, disrupted public transportation and damaged homes and businesses.