Quebecers should be prepared to get out their tuques and shovels on Friday, since Environment Canada predicts that much of the province will receive “significant” amounts of snow, up to 30 centimeters in places.
In warnings issued Thursday afternoon, the federal agency said the greater Montreal area should expect to be covered with 15 to 20 centimeters of snow by Saturday morning.
For the metropolitan area, the snow is expected to start falling Friday morning, then intensify in the afternoon. Rainfall was expected to continue through Saturday.
According to Environment Canada, a depression moving up the American east coast will bring this snowfall to Quebec, just in time for the start of the holiday season.
Moving a little further from Montreal, the Estrie and Outaouais regions, for example, can expect amounts of snow fluctuating between 20 and 30 centimeters.
The Outaouais region should also be the first to feel the effects of this storm, since a period of intense snow is expected from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. Friday morning in Gatineau, according to what Environment Canada said on Twitter.
On the side of Montreal, Trois-Rivières and Sherbrooke, it is rather the return home that promises to be difficult. For the metropolis, the period of intense snow should be between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.
As for the Quebec region, the snowfall should start later, with an intense period beginning around 10 p.m. Environment Canada did not specify the expected snowfall amounts for this area, limiting itself to saying that they will be “significant”.
The meteorological agency also warns that road conditions could be more difficult in many parts of the province on Friday, and urges the population to be careful on the roads.
Rather unusual, the thousands of delegates gathered at COP15, at the Palais des Congrès in Montreal, received an information session on Thursday on the weather conditions expected on Friday, to inform them of what is expected.
For some of them, such accumulations of snow do not occur often — if ever. They therefore needed to be reassured and informed about the measures to be taken.