Prepare to be cold. The mercury will gradually drop across Quebec this week. Next weekend, the thermometer should be close to -30 degrees Celsius in the metropolis. “Extreme cold” warnings will also be issued in several regions.
“It’s going to be pretty biting all week. In fact, the further we go in the week, the colder it will be, ”summarizes the meteorologist at Environment Canada, Katarina Radovanovic, in a telephone interview.
She specifies that it is “especially the nights and the mornings” which will be particularly cold. “Friday, soon enough, we will hit -22 in Montreal, then -27 on Saturday. In terms of perceived temperatures, we will be more in the -35 degrees, so we will have to cover up well, ”continues M.me Radovanovic, also inviting to avoid long trips if possible.
Such temperatures are “a little below normal” in terms of thermometer minimums, but there is nothing “exceptional” for all that, illustrates the meteorologist. “It corresponds to what we are used to seeing at the end of January,” she said.
Most regions are also expected to receive between 5 and 10 centimeters of snow by the end of the day on Monday. But the rest of the week “will be relatively quiet in terms of precipitation,” notes the specialist.
Apart from intermittent light snow expected on Thursday, the Montreal area should indeed be sunny for most of the week, especially Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. The clouds should then return during the next weekend.
Difficult road conditions
At the end of the afternoon, the Sûreté du Québec reported “a few minor collisions” and road trips, the road conditions remaining difficult due to the blowing snow caused by the wind on the roads. However, no major accident scene was in progress, according to agent Catherine Bernard.
Meanwhile, the City of Montreal continued its third snow loading operation on Sunday, with priority clearing of streets and sidewalks now complete. More than 3000 employees and 2200 trucks are deployed until Monday. As a general rule, a loading operation is launched as soon as 15 centimeters of snow have fallen.
To let its snow removal trucks and gritters work, the City also asks motorists to park their cars “at least 30 centimeters from the sidewalk”, in order to avoid any obstacle to employees at work. Approximately 7,600 park-and-ride spaces will be available free of charge, primarily overnight, to park vehicles during on-street parking restrictions. All information on this subject is published on the Info-Neige application of the City of Montreal.
Last week, Thursday, a total of 28 centimeters of snow was recorded at Montreal airport by Environment Canada, during a winter storm that affected Quebec since the previous evening. The regions north of the St. Lawrence River, the Laurentians and Lanaudière, as well as Estrie, received between 20 and 35 centimeters.