Hurricane Fiona is pounding Bermuda, and Canada is bracing for a severe jolt.

Fiona had already slammed a number of Caribbean islands earlier in the week, killing at least eight people and knocking out power to nearly all of Puerto Rico's 3.3 million residents during a scorching heat wave. Five days later, over a million clients were still without electricity.

As it reached Bermuda, the storm was a Category 4 hurricane, but it weakened to a Category 3 as it passed west of the British colony early Friday. Despite this, the Bermuda Weather Service reported gusts of up to 103 miles per hour (166 kilometers per hour) in a bulletin.

The Bermuda Electric Light Co, the island's main power supplier, said that around 29,000 consumers, or more than 80% of its customer base, were without power on Friday morning.

However, Michelle Pitcher, deputy director of the Bermuda Weather Service, stated that the island looked to be relatively unharmed.

As it reached Bermuda, the storm was a Category 4 hurricane, but it weakened to a Category 3 as it passed west of the British colony early Friday. Despite this, the Bermuda Weather Service reported gusts of up to 103 miles per hour (166 kilometers per hour) in a bulletin.

The Bermuda Electric Light Co, the island's main power supplier, said that around 29,000 consumers, or more than 80% of its customer base, were without power on Friday morning.

However, Michelle Pitcher, deputy director of the Bermuda Weather Service, stated that the island looked to be relatively unharmed.

"It's been a long night," Pitcher added, "but there have been no reports of injuries or fatalities." "There may be folks who have roof damage, but we haven't heard of anything serious so far." As I already stated, we construct robust buildings."

To survive regular storms, many Bermuda residences have small shuttered windows, slate roofs, and limestone blocks.

Hurricane Fiona was about 475 miles (770 km) south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Canada's east coast, on Friday afternoon, heading north at 35 mph (56 kph) with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph (215 kph), according to the United States National Hurricane Center.

On Friday, the storm was downgraded to a Category 4 hurricane, which means it may cause catastrophic damage.

Though it is expected to weaken as it proceeds north over colder water, Fiona is still expected to be a severe hurricane-force cyclone when it crosses Atlantic Canada, according to the National Hurricane Center.

"We know that provinces have incredible resources to help and prepare for this, but it's going to be a tough one," Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said during a joint press conference in Ottawa with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol.

"The federal government is deploying resources to assist in any way that is required," Trudeau said.

The storm might be more powerful than Hurricane Juan in 2003 and Hurricane Dorian in 2019, according to Canadian Hurricane Centre meteorologist Bob Robichaud.

"Where it falls in the history books, we'll have to decide after the fact," Robichaud said. "But it will undoubtedly be a historic, extreme event for eastern Canada."

Fiona is predicted to make landfall on Canada's Cape Breton Island, which is home to around 135,000 people, or 15% of Nova Scotia's population, according to Environment Canada on Friday.

A hurricane warning was issued for the majority of central and eastern Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland, all provinces on Canada's east coast. The hurricane center predicted that the storm's core will hit Nova Scotia later on Friday, proceed through the province and into the Gulf of St. Lawrence on Saturday, and cross into Labrador on Sunday.

Forecasters predict that places in its course may receive up to 8 inches (20 cm) of rain, while winds will destroy structures and create electricity disruptions, and storm surges will flood the beaches. Air Canada and WestJet Airlines, the country's two main carriers, will stop regional operations beginning Friday evening.

PUERTO RICO HAS BEEN SLAMMED AGAIN.

Fiona has already shown its destructive might in the Caribbean, killing at least four people in Puerto Rico, according to the US Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Many Puerto Ricans were reminded of the destruction left by Hurricane Maria five years ago, from which the island has yet to fully recover.

Javier Rivera-Aquino, 50, a farmer in Lares, Puerto Rico, before Maria devastated his livelihood, said nearby farms were still digging out, with coffee fruit knocked off mountain trees and entire banana plantations washed out in the valleys.

"Total destruction," he described it. "They've been badly struck, and I'm not sure what they'll do."