Some regions will receive up to 40 centimeters of snow, road conditions will be dangerous in several places and strong winds as well as storm surges could cause road closures, warns Environment Canada as a major winter storm hits Quebec and Ontario in the coming hours.
Special weather statements have been issued for several areas.
Precipitation will begin Friday evening in Ontario and will gradually move eastward.
For the westernmost regions of Quebec, the snowstorm, accompanied by strong winds, will set in overnight, while snow will begin during the day on Saturday in the easternmost areas. .
According to Environment Canada, the regions that received the most snow at the start of the week will still receive the greatest amounts of precipitation.
25 to 40 centimeters are expected in a wide corridor north of the St. Lawrence, from Quebec to Sept-Îles via the regions south of Saguenay.
“There is a special mention for the regions near Quebec which will have particularly strong winds and particularly heavy snow for a good period of time, during the day on Saturday,” warned meteorologist Jean-Philippe Bégin, during a press conference Friday afternoon.
The Montreal region and areas located south of the river will receive less precipitation, 15 to 20 centimeters in places, according to Environment Canada forecasts.
“We must expect conditions to deteriorate quickly,” indicated Jean-Philippe Bégin.
Snow accumulation rates of up to 5 centimeters per hour could be observed in places during the worst of the storm on Saturday, which will make road conditions dangerous, according to Environment Canada.
Storm surges
Citizens of Quebec, the North Shore, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Gaspésie and the Magdalen Islands must prepare for storm surges and very high waves.
“By Saturday, coastal overflows could occur in the same places as during the last storm, therefore, particularly for the regions near Quebec, Saguenay, the southeastern regions of Gaspésie, although a little less intense for Gaspésie,” said the Environment Canada meteorologist.
Roads along the river could be closed.
In the Estrie region, snow is expected to change to rain during the day on Saturday and icy conditions, accompanied by strong winds, could cause power outages again.
On Wednesday, strong winds overturned a bus in this region.