As Quebec is swept by a cold front that is causing temperatures to plummet, strong winds are causing numerous power outages in almost every region of the province.
Around 5:30 a.m., more than 70,000 Hydro-Québec customers were without power — a number that had climbed rapidly during the previous hour.
The Laurentians, Lanaudière and Montérégie regions were the most affected. Each of them had more than 10,000 addresses without electricity.
Chaudière-Appalaches, Estrie and Montreal had between 5,000 and 10,000 homes without electricity.
Outages were also reported in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Capitale-Nationale, Centre-du-Québec, Mauricie, Outaouais and Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, among others.
A weather system began sweeping across the province Monday evening and continued its northeastward trajectory Tuesday morning. Beyond the precipitation—rain or snow, depending on the area—it’s the strong winds that are causing problems.
Environment Canada has issued a “yellow” wind warning for several areas, including the Eastern Townships, the Quebec City region, the Lower St. Lawrence, and the North Shore. The warning indicated expected gusts of up to 90 kilometres per hour.
Other regions, including Abitibi-Témiscamingue, are under a “yellow” winter storm warning, with an additional accumulation of 5 to 10 centimetres of snow expected by midday.
The passage of this weather system is accompanied by a marked drop in temperatures. In Montreal, where it reached 14 Celsius on Monday evening, the mercury is expected to plummet to minus-8 C on Tuesday. With the wind chill, it should feel as cold as minus-16 C.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
