Massive waves slammed Newfoundland and LabradorB次元官网网址檚 coastline on Sunday, as a powerful winter storm left thousands without power, tore down trees and house siding and sent small buildings tumbling into the ocean.

Ian Gillies, reached over the phone from Brigus South B次元官网网址� a community along the coast about 60 kilometres south of St. JohnB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址� says he was blown away by the rough waters and pounding waves.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e been here about 14 years and this is by far the highest surf weB次元官网网址檝e seen,B次元官网网址� he said in an interview Sunday.

B次元官网网址淭he waves crashed over the breakwater. And an island where normally people walk out to, that I would say is 20 or 30 feet above sea level, it had waves crashing over that as well.B次元官网网址�

Large rocks are being swept on to land, covering some roadways.

B次元官网网址淭he plows that are normally doing snow, theyB次元官网网址檙e pushing rocks off the streets,B次元官网网址� Gillies said.

Rob Carroll, an Environment Canada meteorologist stationed out of Gander, N.L., said the B次元官网网址渧ery powerfulB次元官网网址� low pressure system that made its way through the region brought wind speeds between 100 and 120 kilometres an hour in many areas, and as high as 135 kilometres an hour on the Bonavista Peninsula.

Along with the wind, the coastline has been hit with B次元官网网址渟ome very high waves, pounding surf crashing into eastern and northeastern Newfoundland,B次元官网网址� Carroll said.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e seen little buildings right along the coast that have been pulled into the water or flooded, some water coming up over roadways, pushing a lot of rocks across some roadways along the shoreB次元官网网址� a lot of downed trees, some shingles and siding ripped off houses,B次元官网网址� he said, adding that the extent of the damage will become clearer in the next 24 hours.

Pictures and videos on social media show flooding in the St. JohnB次元官网网址檚 area, wind damage to the facade of a downtown pub, debris and rocks that have been washed up on land and waves pounding the coastline.

As of 5 p.m. local time Sunday, more than 8,000 Newfoundland Power customers were in the dark.

Environment Canada has issued weather warnings for the majority of Newfoundland and parts of Labrador, with messy weather forecast through the day into Monday morning.

Western Newfoundland was expected to see around 10 centimetres of snow along with 80 kilometre-an-hour winds, which could result in poor driving conditions and low visibility on roads.

Similarly, poor visibility was expected in the area surrounding Port aux Basques, where up to 15 centimetres of snow was expected along with 100 kilometre-an-hour winds.

In the St. JohnB次元官网网址檚 area, the weather agency called for rainfall between 20 and 40 millimetres which could result in localized flooding in low-lying areas.

In eastern and northeastern Newfoundland, Environment Canada warned of wind gusts between 90 and 120 kilometres an hour, which the weather agency warns could cause damage to roof shingles and windows.