Warmer weather expected in Montreal for the Grand Prix

A spectacular shot of the EF-0 tornado that slipped past Three Hills, Alberta Friday evening. The storm, capable of 135km/h winds, only produced minor damage. It was on the ground for nearly 20 minutes before dissipating. 
(Photo via The Weather Network)

More rain in Montreal
What a miserable stretch of weather southern Quebec has experienced this spring. In total, 41 of the last 66 days through Monday, have featured some form of precipitation. Most of those days were accompanied by cooler than normal temperatures as well. The first week of June has been nothing to celebrate either, with Sunday being the best day of the month, and even then, just a few hours of it. The good news is we can see a bit of warmer weather ahead for the Canadian Grand Prix weekend in Montreal. The bad news is we have a few more days of rain before we get there.

On Monday, 16mm or rain had fallen at my home on L'Ile Perrot as of 4pm. More rain is expected through Tuesday, with some thunderstorms possible as well. A stubborn area of high pressure located over the North Atlantic has been blocking the eastward progression of low pressure systems. Our current weather is the result of an upper level low pressure area slowly drifting southeast across Ontario and into central New York. This system is expected to remain in our region through at least Thursday. By Saturday, high pressure and sunshine should return, with temperatures warming into the middle 20s. The normal high for early June in Montreal should be near 23C (73F).

Alberta Tornado
By now I'm sure many of you have seen the picture shown above of the tornado near Three Hills, Alberta last Friday afternoon. Thankfully the spectacular storm only produced minor damage. The storm was rated an EF-0 tornado on the Enhanced Fujita scale (EF-0 to EF-5), capable of winds up to 137km/h. We are entering the heart of severe weather season in Canada, June through August. On average Canada records 62 tornadoes each year. Saskatchewan leads the way with 18, followed by Alberta with 15 and Ontario with 13. Quebec can expect between 4 and 5 tornadoes each year. Researchers believe many more occur in Canada, but go undetected due to our vast remote areas. If a tornado warning is issued in your region, act quickly and seek shelter in an interior room, preferably with no windows, and at the lowest point in you home.  Put as many walls between you and the outdoors. If you are stuck outside, seek shelter in a sturdy building immediately. If you can't, find the lowest point possible, lie flat and protect your head from debris.