Problem winds forecast across eastern Ontario, western Quebec

Powerful winds are now expected to blow through all of eastern Ontario and western Quebec on Monday, according to Environment Canada.

People waking up to start the workweek are facing a mix of warnings, watches and advisories, most significantly a wind warning along Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River.

Southwesterly wind strength should build through the day to peak with gusts of up to 100 kilometres an hour in the afternoon and evening.

The high winds could damage windows and roof shingles and cause tree branches to break off, the weather agency said.

Power outages started being reported late morning, with about 6,500 local customers out south and west of Ottawa around 1:30 p.m. As most of those areas came back on, just under 11,000 west Ottawa customers briefly lost power around 2:15 p.m.

Late Monday morning, the Thousand Islands Bridge between eastern Ontario and Upstate New York restricted some high-profile vehicles. Provincial police said it was because of high winds.

For boaters, there are also gale and freezing spray warnings for eastern Lake Ontario.

Western Quebec, except for Gatineau, has a snow squall watch Monday.

Snow squalls are moderate to heavy flurries driven by strong, gusty winds that can materialize with little warning and make it very hard to see.

Eastern Ontario and Gatineau have special weather statements about southwesterly winds gusting up to 80 kilometres an hour during the day with up to 10 centimetres of snow, particularly closer to the Ottawa River.

Western Renfrew County could get up to 20 centimetres.

Cold front trailing behind

There's an important postscript across the region: an overnight cold front is expected after the blustery day.

Forecasted overnight lows range from around –15 C in the Kingston area to –17 C in Ottawa and –20 C in Maniwaki, plus a colder-than-normal Tuesday.

The changeover could bring bursts of snow along with it.