A relentless ice storm has left approximately 130,000 Hydro-Québec customers in the dark across Quebec, including 10,000 in Montreal, as of midday Thursday. The storm, a brutal combination of freezing rain and powerful wind gusts, initially plunged around 215,000 homes into darkness at its peak.
Premier François Legault addressed the province, offering a glimmer of hope: the “large majority” of outages should be resolved by 11 p.m. tonight. Hydro-Québec aims to restore power to 95 percent of affected households within that timeframe, though some complex repairs in remote areas will take longer.
The hardest-hit region remains Montérégie, where 50,000 homes are still without electricity. Over 2,000 repair workers, bolstered by crews arriving from Ontario, are working tirelessly to reconnect the grid and mend the damage inflicted by the storm.
Despite the lifting of Environment Canada’s freezing rain alert early Thursday, a treacherous landscape persists. Sidewalks and roads remain coated in ice, and falling branches pose a continuing hazard. Premier Legault is urging residents to remain home if possible, and to exercise extreme caution if travel is unavoidable.
Montrealers venturing out faced slick sidewalks and the threat of falling icicles. One commuter on Parc Avenue reported being struck by a falling icicle, highlighting the lingering dangers. Flooding was also reported on St-Laurent Boulevard, forcing a northbound closure near the Van Horne overpass.
Public transportation faced disruptions as well. Service on the Réseau express métropolitain between Brossard and Gare Central was suspended Wednesday due to ice accumulation on power lines, resuming only around 9 a.m. Thursday.
The Lester B. Pearson School Board announced a board-wide cancellation of classes due to hazardous city road conditions, while other school boards reported individual school closures due to power outages. The storm’s impact extended beyond infrastructure, impacting daily life for many.
Businesses felt the chill as well. At St-Viateur bagel, manager Paul Restreto described Wednesday as “very, very quiet,” estimating business was down to roughly one-tenth of a typical day as residents chose to stay indoors. A sense of fear kept many at home.
Montreal-Trudeau airport is now operating normally, though travelers are advised to confirm their flight status before heading to the airport, as dozens of flights were cancelled Wednesday. The region between Montreal and Trois-Rivières received approximately 25 millimeters of precipitation in the last 24 hours, much of it accumulating as dangerous freezing rain.
Looking ahead, falling temperatures could bring wind gusts up to 70 km/h, adding another layer of complexity to the recovery efforts. The forecast for Montreal calls for possible snow flurries, cloudy skies, and a high of 1 C, dropping to -5 C overnight.
