Spotty freezing rain expected for the Montreal region

A period of freezing rain is forecast for the overnight hours into Thursday morning for southern Quebec. The morning commute may be affected in the metro Montreal region, with temperature marginally cold enough for a little ice accretion to occur. The precipitation will change to rain early Thursday alleviating any travel concerns.

Freezing rain warning for southern Quebec and the Ottawa Valley

Spring has arrived here in Montreal, at least on the calendar. The new season arrived at 5:24pm Monday afternoon, along with bright sunshine and warming temperatures. But as is often the case with March weather, winter still has a few more cards to play. 

High pressure, briefly in control early Wednesday morning across southern Quebec, produced a rather chilly start tot the day, with low temperatures around -6C in Montreal. The warm March sun will help the mercury climb above freezing today, up to 3C by late afternoon. Clouds will be on the increase as our attention turns to an advancing warm front form the central US.

The front will approach our region overnight into Thursday, with precipitation in the form of rain and freezing rain starting during the wee hours of the morning. At the onset, temperatures will marginally cold enough for spotty freezing rain. I am not expecting a ton of ice in metro Montreal or points south, but enough for Environment Canada to issue freezing rain warnings for most of southern Quebec and eastern Ontario. We can expect a few millimetres of frozen precipitation, making the Thursday morning commute icy in places.

Any freezing rain will change to rain early in the day for Montreal, as temperatures rise to 3C (38F).

High pressure will once again take control of our weather Friday, with a sunny, seasonable day forecast.

WEEKEND STORM

A large, potentially winter like storm arrives for the weekend, as strengthening low pressure heads for the Great Lakes and eventually close to the St. Lawrence Valley. A mix of rain and snow is expected across Ontario and Quebec, with quantity and type still to be determined. Enough snow to measure and gusty winds are possible for many of us.