Canada's Atlantic seaboard braced Wednesday for a spring blizzard, closing schools, government offices and businesses, and cancelling flights in anticipation of a record snowfall, powerful winds and flooding.

Authorities said winds could reach up to 180 kilometers per hour (112 miles per hour) and as much as 40 centimeters (15 inches) of snow was expected to fall in parts of the region.

Visibility was nil in the morning across much of the Maritimes due to blowing snow.

Most worrying, however, is the possibility of hurricane force winds causing a high tide to swell and damage wharves and flood coastal areas.

The storm, which is forecast to be the worst in a decade, has been consolidating its energy from several low pressure areas as it moved north along the US eastern seaboard to Canada.

It is expected to reach the island province of Newfoundland on Thursday after sweeping through Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.