Southwestern Quebec on edge of weekend snowstorm

Montreal will remain on the western edge of a weekend coastal storm. At this time only a few flurries are expected in the city, with heavy snow falling from the Townships eastward towards the Maine border. (AccuWeather.com)

It is yet another dreary morning in Montreal, with a light cold rain falling. The day will shape up cloudy, with scattered showers and flurries and temperatures fairly steady near 2 or 3C. The big weather news is the potential for a snowstorm this weekend. But before you get too angry or excited, depending which side of the snow team you root for, it appears the storm will miss Montreal. As was the case earlier this week, when a snowstorm impacted the lower Great Lakes and most of Ontario, sparing southwestern Quebec.

This weekends storm is forecast to move off the Carolina coast late on Friday and strengthen rapidly as it moves along the eastern seaboard and into Maine or Nova Scotia. Precipitation is forecast to spread north into New England on Saturday reaching southern Quebec by late in the day. 

At this time, it appears Montreal will remain on the extreme western edge of this compact storm. At best clouds and gusty northeast winds are expected, at the worst perhaps a few flurries. The forecast track of this storm has been all over the map, and any deviation in the final path will determine exactly where the snow falls. I expect the heaviest snow will fall from the Beauce northeast towards the Lower North Shore and the Gaspe regions. In this area 20-30cm is possible along with strong winds and blowing snow. There is also a risk of freezing rain in the Gaspe. Quebec City and Sherbrooke may receive up to 10cm of fresh snow. Portions of interior New England from Vermont south and east towards the coast are looking at 10 to 30cm of snow. If any of you still actually travel, be aware that driving will be difficult across those regions.

The storm will pull into Atlantic Canada on Sunday, with any snow tapering off to flurries. Colder air will move in behind the system on gusty north winds. Temperatures will be chilly this weekend, remining close to the freezing point for highs and down to -5C for overnight lows in Montreal.

The cool weather remains with us to start next week, with a slight warming trend towards the end of the week. No other storms are on the horizon at this time.