Snowstorm continues its tear through eastern Quebec
Storm surges lap closed roads on North Shore, ferry crossings cancelled in Matane, Magdalen Islands
A winter storm is still wreaking havoc in eastern Quebec today.
Winter storm warnings remain in effect for the Gaspé, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean and the North Shore, among other regions.
The North Shore region got 10 to 20 centimetres of snow overnight, but there may be 50 centimetres on the ground by the time the storm passes.
"On top of that, there are heavy winds reaching 70 to 80 km/h in terms of gusts, so that's generating a whiteout over the eastern sections of Quebec at the moment," said Environment Canada meteorologist Maxime Desharnais.
The snow and strong winds will stick around all day, he said.
Power outages, roads closed
Hydro-Québec says as of 8 p.m., just over 1,000 clients were without power, mostly on the Gaspé Peninsula and Magdalen Islands.
Spokeswoman Catherine Bujold said the main challenge now is getting enough trucks out to that region. The power utility is working with the Transport Ministry to escort Hydro trucks from other areas of the province through the closed roads.
Transports Québec said many roads in the area are snow covered and visibility ranges from fair to poor. More than 800 kilometres of road along Quebec's North Shore had to be closed throughout the day.
As of Friday night, these stretches of road are still closed:
- Highway 132 from Tourelle to Marsoui because of water accumulation.
- Highway 132 from route des Failles to route Bilodeau because of utility work.
- Highway 132 from route de Petit-Pabos to route Hamilton because of water accumulation.
- Highway 138 from Vieux-Fort to Brador because of harsh weather conditions.
Some ferry crossings have also been cancelled between Matane and the North Shore and in the Magdalen Islands.
Transports Québec spokesman Guillaume Paradis advised those planning to travel on the roads today to check conditions on the Québec 511 website before leaving.
Storm surges lap North Shore road
Those living near the coast in the Lower Saint Lawrence, in the North Shore, the Lower North Shore and in the Gaspé regions also have storm surges to deal with.
About 20 residents in Sept-Îles were forced to leave their homes because of flooding. Sept-Îles Mayor Réjean Porlier said the areas of the city most affected by the high water are Val-Marguerite, Gallix, Clark City and along shoreline.
The surging sea has also damaged some homes in Kegaska, a small village on the Lower North Shore.
One video, posted to Facebook by Monique Hounsell of Natasquan, on the North Shore, shows sea water creeping inland. Hounsell remarks that the waves are lapping the road well before high tide.
Environment Canada's Desharnais warned that the water levels are much higher than normal, meaning there's a high risk of flooding and other damage along the coast.
Calm in Quebec City
Quebec City got 20 to 25 centimetres yesterday and another five fell Friday morning.
Areas between Montreal to about Trois-Rivières saw from 15 to 20 centimetres and will get between two and 10 more today.
The same system is bringing snow, rain and strong winds to parts of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador over the course of the day.
with files from Brennan Neill and Radio-Canada