(CNN)Fiona is ripping through Canada's eastern seaboard at hurricane strength after making landfall in Nova Scotia on Saturday, slamming the area with fierce winds and storm surge, sapping power for hundreds of thousands and washing away or collapsing some coastal homes.
Some coastal homes collapsed, and a few toppled structures even fell into the sea or were surrounded by floodwater in Newfoundland and Labrador, pictures sent from the province Saturday morning showed.
Roy told CNN he evacuated from his home and staying with a cousin on higher ground. He has no idea if his home is still standing and emergency personnel stopped him from driving over to check. It was unsafe to do so, they warned.
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Fiona slams Canada's Atlantic coast
Pictures by another area resident, Terry Osmond, showed a collapsed building in Channel-Port aux Basques surrounded by seawater at the shoreline, and splintered wood and other debris were scattered across town.
"Never in my lifetime" has there been "so much destruction ... in our area," Osmond, 62, wrote to CNN.
A woman in town was rescued from water Saturday afternoon after her home collapsed, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said. She was taken to a hospital; the extent of her injuries wasn't immediately known, police said.
Devastation is 'breathtaking,' mayor says
Restoring power was among officials' biggest priorities, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said during a Saturday news conference, describing "shocking" damage across the province, including communities whose roads had been washed out and littered with downed trees and power lines.
But weather conditions were still too severe in many areas for crews to begin assessing and repairing damage, said Nova Scotia Power President and CEO Peter Gregg. More than 900 power technicians are on their way to the area, but with parts of the province still experiencing storm conditions, Gregg added some customers may experience power outages for several days.
"There are more than 70 road closures and hazards," it warned.
West of landfall, in Nova Scotia's capital, Halifax, an apartment complex's roof collapsed, forcing about 100 people to leave for a shelter, Mayor Mike Savage told CNN Saturday.
"The magnitude of this storm has been breathtaking," Savage later said in Saturday's news conference. "It turned out to be everything predicted."
"Conditions are like nothing we've ever seen," Charlottetown police tweeted early Saturday.
Fiona could become Canada's Superstorm Sandy
Hurricane-force gusts were reported Saturday morning across parts of Maritime Canada, generally ranging from 70 to 95 mph (110 to more than 150 kph). A top gust as of midmorning was 111 mph (179 kph) in Arisaig, Nova Scotia, according to Environment Canada.
An unofficial barometric pressure of 931.6 mb was recorded Saturday at Hart Island, which would make Fiona the lowest pressure landfalling storm on record in Canada, according to the Canadian Hurricane Centre.
Similarities with 2012's Superstorm Sandy
"Sandy was larger than Fiona is expected to be even. But the process is essentially the same, where you have two features kind of feeding off each other to create one strong storm like we're going to see," he said Friday.