With temperatures above normal for the season, the month of January has so far been “unusually” mild and snowy. But don’t put away your toques and mittens too quickly, because a cold snap is expected to hit Quebec in the coming weeks.
So far, Montreal has not experienced a day when the mercury fell below -20°C in January. And only one day saw the temperature drop below -15°C.
“The coldest temperature since the beginning of the month was January 16 with a minimum of -16.1°C. It’s really exceptional,” says André Monette, head of meteorology at MétéoMédia.
Each year, Montreal observes an average of seven or eight nights with minimum temperatures below -20 ° C in January, indicates Jean-Philippe Bégin, meteorologist at Environment Canada. “This year, so far, we’re at zero,” he said.
The cold weather is coming
Since the beginning of January, the average temperature recorded in Montreal has been about 5°C above seasonal norms, indicates Mr. Monette. The situation is similar across the province. “Elsewhere in Quebec, it’s about 4 to 6 degrees above average,” he says.
Since the beginning of winter, the province has been spared from cold spells. “But when it’s mild somewhere, it’s cold elsewhere,” says Jean-Philippe Bégin.
In December, the cold was particularly present in western Canada. In January, the cold was rather in Russia, in Siberia.
However, the cold should soon return to Quebec, say meteorologists. “We are going to see a change in the situation. The end of January and the beginning of February promise to be very cold in Quebec. There is a return of the pendulum,” explains Mr. Bégin.
A month of January full of storms
Since the beginning of winter, Quebec has recorded much more precipitation than normal. So far, 125 cm of snow has fallen in Montreal. “Normally, on January 24, we should be at 107 cm. We are about 18 cm longer than normal,” said Mr. Monette. That’s not counting the 20 to 25 cm of snow expected from Wednesday to Thursday, which should widen this gap.
Snow and winter storm warnings are in effect for several regions of Quebec, mainly in the eastern part of the province.
The snowfall, which will begin this Wednesday evening and continue throughout the day Thursday, will be accompanied by moderate winds, which will cause blowing snow at times.
In Montreal, gusts of 50 to 60 km/h are expected. “It will cause blowing snow in the most exposed places, especially near the St. Lawrence River,” says Mr. Bégin. In the eastern part of the province, the winds will be even stronger. “There will also be a lot more snow,” he said.
Environment Canada warns that there could be significant impacts on rush hour traffic in urban areas. “Be prepared for changing and rapidly deteriorating road conditions. Visibility can be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow,” the federal agency writes on its website.