Storm sideswipes Montreal region - impacts Ontario

Unfortunately Thursdays storm across southern Ontario and Quebec resulted in several serious multi-vehicle collisions. The one above involved at least 20 vehicles, east of Mallorytown on eastbound Highway 401. The highway was closed for hours. There were several serious injuries reported as a result. (OPP Photo) 

It has been a difficult winter predicting snow amounts for the Montreal region. Thursday was no different as the storm underperformed across southern Quebec. The system developed very quickly from a combination of factors and then began weakening just as fast. In the end, dry air worked into the the eastern side of the storm and moved over southwestern Quebec basically shutting off the snowfall early. Montreal received 8cm, with Saint Anicet measuring 13cm.

Despite the lower quantities, the combination of gusty winds and dropping temperatures made for very difficult driving conditions on and off the Island of Montreal. There were several major accidents, including closures along Highway 132 on the South Shore, and Highway 40 near Pointe Fortune, after a semi ran into the back of a snowplow.

Despite the lower amounts of snow observed across southern Quebec with the current storm, roads were still treacherous, with several major accidents reported. Roads remain slick Friday morning, with cold temperatures, black ice and packed snow on some neighbourhood streets. Gusty west winds are resulting in blowing snow on off-island highways. (Valley Weather)

In Ontario, the storm was fierce, with very heavy snow, strong winds and frigid temperatures. Near-blizzard conditions around Toronto resulted in the closure of several Highways, including the Don Valley Parkway. The heavy snow spread east and north impacting the Ottawa Valley and 401 corridor towards Cornwall. East of Kingston there was a major multi-vehicle collision, with serious injuries, involving at least 20 vehicles. The highway was closed for hours near Mallorytown. The storm also closed most schools across the GTA and delayed operations at Pearson International. School busses were cancelled across all of eastern Ontario.

Snowfall amounts were very impressive in southern Ontario, with 50cm in Scarborough North, 25 to 30cm in Toronto and 18cm at Ottawa Airport. Other parts of the National Capital Region had close to 30cm. Along the Seaway, 15 to 20cm fell from Cornwall to Kingston.

After the storm, arctic air has settled into the Montreal region, along with snow flurries. The temperature Friday morning was -16C (4F), combined with winds up to 40km/h to produce windchills as cold as -27C (-17F). Friday will be blustery and cold all day, with highs struggling to reach -10C (14F). Temperatures will warm Friday night into Saturday, as another clipper system skirts to our south. Highs will rise all the way to -1C (30F). We may see a few flurries or perhaps some light snow into Saturday. The warming will be brief, as arctic air returns to start the new week.