First major snowstorm of the season hits Quebec, more than 100,000 lose power, schools closed
Posted December 4, 2023 8:37 am.
Last Updated December 4, 2023 7:32 pm.
Many parts of Quebec saw their first big snowfall of the season. It started Sunday and by Monday morning, southern Quebec had been hardest hit. Over 100,000 Hydro customers were off the grid due to the heavy snow.
“What we’re seeing this morning is that the snow that’s falling in the most affected regions is very, very heavy. It’s filled with water because of the temperatures around zero,” said Caroline Des Rosiers, a spokesperson for Hydro Quebec.
“The snow that’s extremely heavy falls on branches that can be weak branches or trees that fall on the network. And that’s what’s causing the outages in the most affected regions.”
Nearly 25 cm of snow had fallen in several regions, including Montreal. And the city could see up to 30 cm.
Environment Canada says a few more centimeters will fall during the day, with partial clearing beginning in the evening. A snowfall warning was still in effect as of 8 a.m. Monday. The federal agency warned that wind gusts of between 50 and 70 kilometers per hour could occur along the St. Lawrence Valley.
In southern Quebec, the snowfall was heavy, putting a strain on vegetation and power lines. Over 107,000 Hydro-Québec customers were without power as of 9 a.m. Monday. The areas mainly affected are the Eastern Townships, the Montérégie, Montreal, Quebec City and the Outaouais.
By 3 p.m. just over 62,000 were still off the grid, mainly in Estrie and the Montérégie. About 1,400 customers remained in the dark on the island of Montreal.
On Sunday evening and Monday night, snow fell at a rate of 2 to 3 cm per hour in southwestern Quebec.
On the road network, most major highways in southern Quebec were snow-covered or partially clear Monday morning, according to Transports Québec. Visibility was generally good, but reduced in some places, particularly on secondary roads. Environment Canada warned there could be significant impacts on rush hour.
Flight delays were also reported.
The city of Montreal will begin its first snow removal of the season on Tuesday and say it should take four to five days to complete.
“It would be really great if people kept as much possible their snow on their own property,” said Maja Vodanovic, adding, “because if you put the snow on the street it takes more time for us to pick it up. It costs more money as well. And it also hinders parking for other people.”
From Tuesday to Thursday, weather conditions are expected to be partly sunny, but temperatures will be colder, especially on Wednesday.
The weather conditions have forced school closures at the following schools Monday:
- Rawdon Elementary School
- Joliette Elementary and High School
- All schools of the Eastern Townships School Board
- Centre académique Fournier (elementary and high school)
- École de l’Archipel (no daycare)
- École Marie-Anne
- École Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption (no daycare)
- École de la Rive (no daycare)
- École Saint-Jean-Baptiste (no daycare)
- Formation générale aux adultes, édifice d’Abbotsford
- Formation générale aux adultes, édifice Châteauguay
- Rotiwennakehte Elementary School
- Ratihen:te High School
- Vanguard School
- All Chateauguay schools of the New Frontiers School Board
- ACCESS Cleghorn adult vocational school
- Saint-Lambert Elementary and High School
- Greenfield Park Primary
- St. Mary’s School
- Terry Fox Elementary School
- Reach Green and Queen
- St-Jude Elementary
