Freezing rain from a winter storm has left several regions of Quebec and more than half a million households without power, according to Hydro-Québec.
In an
advisory posted on social media April 5, the power company said the outages are mostly being caused by the weight of ice causing branches and trees near the power grid to break and fall on the lines.
Environment Canada issued a severe weather alert, reporting wind gusts of approximately 60 km/hour in Montreal. The area is
expected to receive 10 to 20 millimetres of ice on April 5, with freezing rain eventually changing to rain later in the evening.
After midnight, fog patches are expected, with wind gusts from 20 to 40 km/hour.
The regions most affected are Montreal, l'Outaouais, Lanaudière, and la Montérégie et les Laurentides. The power company said it had more than 500 workers trying to restore service as quickly as possible.
Due to ongoing poor weather, the company warned that other outages may occur, and time frames for service restoration were not possible.
“As the weather event is still ongoing, further outages could occur and the situation may still evolve,” said Hydro-Québec.
Environment Canada has warned that highways, roads, walkways, and other surfaces will be slippery, icy, and hazardous. Ice build-up could cause tree branches to break, said the forecast. Some areas may experience
lightning, according to meteorologists.
The town of Épiphanie, in the Lanaudière area, told residents to plan for up to 72 hours without power.
A number of schools in the Montreal area were
closed on April 5 due to weather. Canada Post also issued red delivery service alerts for parts of Quebec, cancelling mail delivery to the Outaouais region, Maniwaki, and Mont-Laurier.
Canada Post
said delivery would resume once conditions improve, with the safety of employees the number one priority.
