Storm Dorian makes landfall in Canada

Storm Dorian has made landfall in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia as a post-tropical cyclone, days after it hit the Bahamas as a Category 5 hurricane causing widespread devastation to the archipelago.

The powerful storm hit Halifax on Saturday with winds of 160kmh, toppling trees and cutting power to more than 450,000 homes, the BBC reported.

Canada's Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said the military would be deployed to help recovery efforts.

The Canadian Hurricane Centre labelled Dorian a "very intense post-tropical cyclone".

Officials said it had already dropped more than 100 mm of rain on Nova Scotia and could double by Sunday morning.

The storm is expected to pass over northern Newfoundland and eastern Labrador early on Sunday.

Residents close to the shore were advised to evacuate as a precaution.

Dorian made a "catastrophic" landfall in the Bahamas on September 1 as a Category 5 hurricane, with winds reaching 295kmh.

The death toll there is 43 but officials believe that hundreds of bodies were yet to be found in areas flattened by the winds or smashed by storm surges.

UN officials said about 70,000 people on Grand Bahama and the Abcao Islands were in need of assistance.