Windy arctic front to start meteorological Spring in Montreal

A potent warm front delivered over 10cm of wet snow to Montreal on Saturday, February 27. The snow caught many by surprise, creating very poor driving conditions during most of the day. (Valley Weather Photo)

Arctic cold front arrives late Monday.

Poor road conditions are possible Monday afternoon and evening, as 2 to 5cm of snow are possible along the cold front, as well as a flash freeze due to sharply falling temperatures.

Sunday was spectacular as warm sunshine pushed the temperature up to 6C (43F) on Ile Perrot, as we say goodbye to meteorological winter and hello to spring. There was plenty of melting just 24 hours after a rather strong warm front delivered 10cm of snow to Montreal. The snow was heavy and wet and not really expected. The snow should have changed to mostly rain in Montreal almost immediately, but marginally cold air allowed the precipitation to remain as all snow for the duration, with just some light rain mixing in as the front lifted north of the city.

A weak area of low pressure is now forecast to move across southern Quebec Sunday evening, accompanied by light precipitation, mostly in the form of rain. There is even a slight chance of a rumble or two of thunder, especially across eastern Ontario. Gusty winds are also expected to develop this evening, reaching as high as 90km/h southeast of Montreal in the Richelieu Valley.

ARCTIC FRONT

On Monday, a strong arctic boundary will approach southern Quebec, bringing an abrupt end to our early spring weather. Much colder air will pour into the region as the day progresses, with a very mild high of 4C (39F) reached early in the day. As the main arctic boundary crosses the region late Monday afternoon, frigid air will pour in, accompanied by scattered snow showers. Some of the snow showers may be briefly heavy, with blowing snow and reduced visibility. Winds will veer back to the northwest and gust to 60km/h into the overnight hours Monday. Temperatures will plummet down to -5C (23F) by the late afternoon, and -16C (4F) by Tuesday morning. Tuesday will be sunny, but breezy and unseasonably cold, with a high of -8C (18F).