Hurricane Juan

Hurricane Juan

Category 2 hurricane (SSHWS/NWS)
Hurricane Juan near peak intensity
Formed	September 24, 2003
Dissipated	September 29, 2003
Highest winds	1-minute sustained: 105 mph (170 km/h)
Lowest pressure	969 mbar (hPa); 28.61 inHg
Fatalities	2 deaths
Damage	$200 million (2003 USD)
Areas affected	Eastern Canada (primarily Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island)
Part of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season

Hurricane Juan was a significant tropical cyclone that heavily damaged parts of Atlantic Canada in late September 2003. It was the tenth named storm and the sixth hurricane of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season. Juan formed southeast of Bermuda on September 24 from a tropical wave that had tracked across the subtropical Atlantic Ocean. It tracked northward and strengthened over the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, reaching Category 2 strength on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale on September 27. The hurricane peaked in intensity with sustained winds of 105 mph (165 km/h) that same day, losing some strength as it raced over cooler waters toward the coast of Nova Scotia. Juan made landfall between Shad Bay and Prospect in the Halifax Regional Municipality early on September 29 as a Category 2 hurricane with winds of 100 mph (160 km/h). Juan retained hurricane strength while crossing Nova Scotia from south to north, though it weakened to a Category 1 storm over Prince Edward Island. It was absorbed by another extratropical low later on September 29 near Anticosti Island in the northern Gulf of Saint Lawrence.

The hurricane inflicted extensive damage across central Nova Scotia and into Prince Edward Island, with lesser damage east and west of the storm centre. Most of the damage occurred as a result of the intense winds that buffeted the region. Juan's passage resulted in eight fatalities and over CA $300 million (US $200 million) in damage. It was described as the worst storm to hit Halifax since 1893.