Arctic air settles across eastern North America

A snowy scene in Senneville last week. Mild temperatures on Saturday dropped 3.2mm of rain on Montreal, melting away some of the snow that has accumulated this month. Officially, only 2cm of snow remain on the ground at Trudeau Airport. Many parts of the US have more snowfall this winter. (Valley Weather Photo)  

Skies have cleared out Monday morning across southern Quebec, with temperatures dropping close to -18C (0F) at many locations. Ottawa is down to -20C (-4F). Monday will be cold and blustery in Montreal, as a winter storm pulls into Atlantic Canada and arctic high pressure surges across the Great Lakes.

We can expect temperatures to remain pretty much where they are for highs today, perhaps -15C (5F). Tonight, depending on how much cloud cover moves into the St. Lawrence Valley from lake effect snow, we may drop as cold as -20C. The official forecast calls for a low of -17C (2F). Both Tuesday and Wednesday will be cold, with partly cloudy skies at times and perhaps a stray snow shower or two. Highs will range from -12C to -15C, with lows -17C to -21C. Gusty northwest winds, especially on Tuesday, will result in windchill values in the minus 20s. 

A clipper system will bring 1-3cm of snow late Wednesday, along with moderating temperatures.

Montreal is once again in the middle of a rather snowless winter, with officially only 2cm on the ground at Trudeau Airport. The seasonal total sits at 53.8cm. The last time Montreal had a 20cm snowfall was April 4, 2024, which was the largest storm last winter. The last time Montreal had a significant storm was December 3, 2023, when 21.8cm fell, with a two day total of 35.4cm.

Snow and freezing rain will spread across the deep southern US this week from Texas to North Carolina, including Florida. (AccuWeather Image)

Once in a generation Southern Snowstorm

The cold air will spread south all the way to the Gulf of Mexico early this week, while lo pressure develops in the Gulf and moves northeast. On Tuesday, snow and freezing rain will sweep across regions that have not had winter weather in decades. Forecasters are expecting a swath of 10-15cm (4-6 inches) of snow from Houston to New Orleans to Mobile northeast into Georgia and the Carolinas. A significant ice storm is also expected with 5-15mm if freezing rain possible across the Mississippi and Florida Gulf Coasts. This includes parts of the Florida Panhandle as far east as Jacksonville. Winter storm warnings stretch from Texas to North Carolina including Florida.

This may be a once in a generation storm for many. The last snowfall of 2.5cm (1 inch) in New Orleans was over 15 years ago. The record for that city is 6cm (2.7 inches) set on December 31, 1962. Many southern cities are set to break there all time snow and ice records.