Severe thunderstorms still affect southern Quebec

For the second time in less than a month, severe thunderstorms hit many parts of southern Quebec and Ontario on Thursday, causing power outages, flooding, and other damage. A taste of summers to come, according to an Environment Canada meteorologist.

Frederik-Xavier Duhamel
The Press

Erika Bisaillon
The Press

“We can expect more and more storms and severe weather over the next few years,” said Maxime Desharnais, meteorologist for Environment Canada. Thursday’s thunderstorms come weeks after other severe storms swept through southern Quebec and Ontario on May 21, leaving extensive damage in their wake.

In its latest report on the consequences of climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) notes that “climatic hazards affected by hydrological changes, including […] extreme precipitation and more intense storms are expected to intensify” in North America.

Thousands of breakdowns, ruined crops

At the height of the blackouts, more than 40,000 customers were without power, mainly in Montreal, the Laurentians, and Montérégie. By 8:15 p.m., however, that number had dropped to 32,200 customers.

Pierre Desjardins, owner of Vergers Méli-Mélo in Saint-Joseph-du-Lac, in the Laurentians, confirmed that his orchard suffered major damage. “The orchard is destroyed and the fields are completely flooded. Hail is never welcome in our fields, but even less so at this time of year! “, confided the farmer, who has never seen such large hailstones in all his life: “They were as big as $2! »

For his part, Louis Marineau, of Ferme Marineau in Laval, did not suffer the pangs of hail, but those of torrential rains. “Our tiny strawberry plants that we had just planted for next year were torn out and dug up by the force of the drops,” he said.

Heavy rain accumulations and overflows in Montreal

“We had a difficult end to the day,” admitted Philippe Sabourin, spokesperson for the City of Montreal, referring to the heavy accumulations of rain – at least 40 mm over a very short period, according to Environment Canada. The showers mainly affected the central sectors and the west of the island, said Mr. Sabourin. The accumulation of water was observed on the roadway in many places – and relayed on social networks by Internet users.

Many sumps were clogged, and low points, such as passages under viaducts, had to be temporarily closed, said the spokesperson for the City. This was particularly the case at the Acadie roundabout, which was renovated in 2015 to prevent flooding. “The most important event we had was in the Acadie roundabout, we had to close from 5 p.m. to 7:40 p.m. the ramp that leads from 15 South to Metropolitan East,” said Sarah Bensadoun, spokesperson for the Quebec Ministry of Transport (MTQ).

Three people had to be evacuated from the flooded area by MTQ teams assisted by police, she added, adding that they were not injured.

The City also had to carry out overflows – and therefore release water without treating it – to relieve its sewer system, an operation that Mr. Sabourin described as “rare”.

Dozens of basements were nevertheless flooded, lamented the spokesperson, without being able to give an exact number. He recalled that citizens who have suffered damages can turn to the claims office on the Ville de Montréal website.

Transport disrupted

In the early evening, the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) warned users on Twitter that a service interruption affected the entire blue line, due to water infiltration at the Outremont station, said a spokeswoman. A shuttle service was set up between the Snowdon and Saint-Michel stations, and the service was restored around 8 p.m.

“The lightning alert in effect could disrupt flight schedules, ground operations and baggage delivery,” said Montreal-Trudeau International Airport on the same platform around 4 p.m.

“We had several calls […], but we have no confirmed response,” said George Bele, of the Montreal Fire Department (SSIM) shortly before 6 p.m. These citizens and alarm systems reported water damage and electrical issues, but firefighters were not required to respond other than to help pump water out of basements.

“A dangerous situation that could cause fatal injuries. »

Environment Canada issued severe and life-threatening thunderstorm warnings for many parts of southern Quebec and Ontario early Thursday afternoon.

“Environment Canada meteorologists are monitoring a very dangerous thunderstorm that can produce destructive gusts, hail the size of a baseball or more and heavy rain,” the federal agency said in its warning for Montreal. . “This is a dangerous situation that can cause fatal injuries. »

Environment Canada also issued a tornado warning for Mont-Laurier, which did not materialize. Other areas affected by severe thunderstorm warnings range from Windsor, in the tip of southern Ontario, and roughly follow the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River to the Saguenay.

According to Mr. Desharnais, of Environment Canada, the municipalities of Saint-André-D’Argenteuil and Pointe-Calumet were the most affected by the hail. “Pointe-Calumet had received hailstones of more than 5 cm at the end of the afternoon. »