Quebecers will celebrate Christmas in the snow for the first time in several years, even though little precipitation is expected over the next few hours.
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If the last Christmases were marked by several episodes of warm weather, the trend was reversed for this year.
“This year, we will have had a white Christmas in all regions of southern Quebec,” confirmed Friday in an interview with LCN Simon Legault, meteorologist at Environment Canada.
A few snowflakes will be expected in the morning on Saturday in this sector of the province, particularly in the Laurentians and Mauricie regions.
“It’s not huge, but let’s say it makes people happy who haven’t seen a white Christmas since 2017,” said the meteorologist.
Freezing rain could also affect southern Montérégie and the Outaouais, Environment Canada having also issued a special bulletin for the Gatineau sector.
“Precipitation associated with the front [chaud] Should start to fall in the form of snow or sleet this evening or overnight before changing to freezing rain or freezing drizzle. The risk of freezing rain is expected to end by late morning Christmas Day for most communities, but the risk of freezing drizzle is likely to persist through the afternoon, ”the federal agency said in the morning.
“In fgeneral [les déplacements vont] go well. On the Gaspé and Côte-Nord side, there are always very strong winds, so road conditions are not ideal in Eastern Quebec, ”said Mr. Legault.
A blowing snow warning was reported by Environment Canada for the municipalities of Gaspé, Blanc-Sablon and Chevery, but also for Fermont and Schefferville, a few hours after Eastern Quebec recorded a good snowfall.
“The fresh snow combined with the strong winds from the westerly sector will greatly reduce visibility until Saturday morning,” he said.
If an extreme cold warning has been issued for the corner of Chibougamau, with temperatures approaching -40 degrees Friday evening, temperatures should return to around seasonal norms in the Belle Province.
“We will have a return to temperatures which are rather normal for the season, so we will maybe find -15 at night, -5 to -7 during the day. There are still good conditions to be able to enjoy the outdoors and the start of next week will also be quite sunny, ”according to Simon Legault.
“The very cold, we do not see them immediately, probably in January we will have a few small waves a little colder, but it is not a month that promises to be necessarily very cold”, he added.