Messy mix of wind and rain to hit Nova Scotia Thursday night and Friday

Batten down the hatches the province is in for a round of wind-driven rainThursdaynight andFriday.

That's right, snow lovers, we're in forwind and rain again ... apologies.

Much like the past few systems, we will find ourselves on the warm side of this area of low pressure as it develops near Cape Codon Thursdaybefore moving through Maine and into Quebec.

WestJet is offering to change flights without penalty Thursday and Friday, based on seat availability, in areas affected by the weather.

Blanket wind warning

Already Nova Scotia is under a blanket wind warning by Environment Canada.

The southeast winds Thursday willreally ramp up overnight into the early morning hours ofFriday.

Widespread gusts of 70 to 100 kilometres per hourare being indicated by several computer forecast models.

The topography of the highlands could further enhance the gusts to push them over 100 kilometres per hour for Inverness County.

The winds will turn southwestFridayafternoon but continue to include gusts of 50 to 80 kilometres per hour.

Possible power outages, travel delays

They will slowly subsideFridayevening and night.

With winds that strong, impacts to the province could include power outages, delays in travel services think ferriesand flights as well as produce a rough and pounding surf around the coast.

Be careful if near the water in the fierce windson Friday.

The rain from the system will moveinto the southwest of Nova ScotiaThursdayevening and spreadacross the mainland near and a few hours aftermidnight.

Potential for localized flooding

The rain is expected to moveinto Cape Breton before sunriseFriday and shouldwind down to showers or drizzle byFridayafternoon.

That said, most of the province can expect 10 to 20 millimetreswith higher local amounts, up to 40 millimetres, possible on the Atlantic coastline and in Cape Breton.

Keep in mind that the ground is frozen so standing water or localized flooding could be expected.Environment Canada has issued a rainfall warning for much of the Atlantic coast and Cape Breton.

As a travel advisory for the region, this same system is expected to bring 15 to 30 centimetres of snow to parts of northern New Brunswick.

Check in frequently on the watches or warnings released for your area and you can find more from myself atFacebook, Twitter, and Instagram.