The province of Quebec will be hit hard from Tuesday evening by a major winter storm which could well blow up to 40 centimeters of snow by Wednesday afternoon, over a major part of the territory.
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No less than 25 to 40 centimeters of snow should accumulate in central Quebec between Tuesday evening and Wednesday afternoon, covering in particular the Capitale-Nationale and the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region, but also more areas. to the west like the Laurentians, Lanaudière and Saint-Jérôme, with a thick white carpet, according to Environment Canada forecasts.
The federal agency recommends “delaying all non-essential travel until conditions improve,” noting in particular “heavy snow” which could drastically reduce visibility at times.
Eastern sectors will not be spared, while Environment Canada is also forecasting between 20 and 40 centimeters of blowing snow, particularly in the regions of Amqui, Baie-Comeau, Sept-Îles – Port-Cartier and Rimouski.
For its part, the Abitibi and Témiscamingue region should expect around fifteen centimeters of snow.
A weather cocktail of 10 to 20 centimeters of snow turning into freezing rain overnight is however expected to fall on the Gatineau region, which will experience dangerous road conditions.
In the area of metropolitan Montreal up to Drummondville, Saint-Hyacinthe and Beauce, an accumulation of 10 to 15 cm of snow and sleet Tuesday evening should quickly turn into rain with the rise in the mercury, not without a transition to freezing rain , according to the federal agency.
A strong wind alert is also in effect on the Îles-de-la-Madeleine, where gusts could reach a maximum of 100km/h.
Here are the accumulations forecast by region:
10 to 15 centimeters of snow and sleet:
Beauce, Drummondville – Bois-Francs, Metropolitan Montreal – Laval, Richelieu Valley – Saint-Hyacinthe and Vaudreuil – Soulanges – Huntingdon
15 centimeters of snow:
Abitibi and Témiscamingue
10 to 20 centimeters of snow:
Gatineau
20 to 40 centimeters of snow:
Amqui – Matapedia valley, Anticosti, Baie-Comeau, Blanc-Sablon, Chevery, Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup – Trois-Pistoles, Les Escoumins – Forestville, Matane, Minganie, Montmagny – L’Islet, Natashquan, New Carlisle – Chandler, Forillon National Park – Gaspé – Percé, Gaspésie National Park – Murdochville, Restigouche – Bonaventure, Rimouski – Mont-Joli, Manicouagan River, Sainte-Anne-des-Monts – Grande-Vallée, Sept-Îles – Port -Cartier and Témiscouata
25 to 40 centimeters of snow:
Charlevoix, Haute-Gatineau – Lièvre – Papineau, La Tuque, Lac-Saint-Jean, Lachute – Saint-Jérôme, Lanaudière, Laurentides, Mauricie, Mont-Laurier, Mont-Tremblant park – Saint-Michel-des-Saints, Parent – Gouin reservoir, Pontiac, Quebec, Laurentides wildlife reserve, La Vérendrye and Saguenay wildlife reserve