Wintry weather causes accidents and power outages in the Montreal region

Seven hours of freezing rain coated trees and power lines in parts of Montreal on Sunday. More than 14,000 Hydro-Quebec customers were left without power. (Valley Weather Photo)

A messy mix of snow and freezing rain moved across southern Ontario and Quebec on Sunday, as the first winter storm of the season moved from Ohio into Maine. Montreal was right on the snow/rain line, with a few hours of snow to start, followed by 7 hours of freezing rain.

The mixed bag of precipitation took a toll on roads and power lines. Several major crashes occurred, including one on Highway 19 involving 20 cars. Others were reported on the west end of the island, where anything elevated become iced over quickly during the afternoon hours.

Power lines and trees were coated in ice as well, this was especially true right along the St. Lawrence River. Outages totalled close to 15,000 at the height of the storm, that number is down to 9,500 Monday morning. Most involve trees coming in contact with wires.

In Montreal the mercury sat right around the freezing point, with around 10mm of freezing rain falling and 1-3cm of wet snow, depending on your exact location. Further north and west, it was all snow. Ottawa reported 12cm, while Roberval, north of Montreal measured 15cm. Winds gusted well over 60km/h at times, making for a real raw November day.

More snow fell in Ottawa, with 12cm observed. Roads were slick in eastern Ontario, with hundreds of accidents reported. (Photo: 613Wrecked)

In Ontario, hundreds of accidents were reported by the OPP along both highways 401 and 417. Most of Ontario reported mainly snow, with the exception of a narrow sliver along the Saint Lawrence River from Kingston to Cornwall.

The weather will continue to be winter like this week, with significant lake effect snow expected south and east of the Great Lakes. Here in southern Quebec, expect flurries off and on through Tuesday evening, along with moderate northwest winds to 50km/h. Snow may accumulate locally 2-4cm, especially if we tap into some Great Lakes moisture.

Temperatures will fall on Monday below freezing again, down to -2C (29F) Tuesday morning and remain stationary all day. The weather will remain unsettled all week, with a mix of rain and snow froecast for Wednesday. Amounts should be on the light side, but expect slick spots when driving.

Have those winter tires installed and please use common sense and courtesy and clean the ice and snow off your car. I noticed on my Monday morning commute, ice flying off several vehicles and striking others. Please take a few minutes and clean your vehicle.