Quick burst of snow today

Strong winds, over 100km/h, swept Montreal yesterday cutting power ot over 30,000 homes in the metro region. (Radio-Canada)

It is another cold morning in Montreal with -21C here on L'Ile Perrot and -23C at St-Anne-de-Bellevue on the west island. The airport for some reason seems to be in a warmer bubble showing -15C. Arctic high pressure has at least brought us calm winds after yesterday's wind storm. Winds gusted as high as 107km/h in Montreal. Power was out to over 80,000 homes in the province but Hydro Quebec has since restored most of that by last evening with the exception of about 10,000 mostly in metro Montreal. People I spoke with yesterday told me how the wind was so strong it woke them up shaking their homes and moving frozen patio furniture off decks and into yards.

We have another quick moving windy system on the way over the next 12 hours or so, but it will be a very fast and rather weak storm. It will however bring a wind shift and perhaps a few snow showers to the area. Clouds will increase today with temperatures warming to -10C. Some snow shower activity and gusty winds to 50km/h will develop this evening. If you are travelling the 401 to Toronto late today and this evening there could be some brief bursts of heavy snow and blowing snow, especially from Brockville to Trenton.

Accumulations generally will be around 2 or 3cm, but as much as 8-15cm could fall along the northeast shore of Lake Ontario and as far northeast as Brockville along the St. Lawrence Valley. As a matter of fact a Winter Weather Advisory for snow and blowing snow is posted for Jefferson County, NY along Interstate 81, this includes Watertown, New York and the Thousand Islands region. Eastern Ontario and southern Quebec area will see a brief period of snow ending by midnight. Winds will shift back to the northwest overnight up to 40km/h and temperatures will tumble again into the minus teens and staying there on Friday. Windchill values once again will be close to -20C on Friday.