The federal agency has issued a special weather forecast forecasting a weather cocktail caused by a major system coming from the southern United States.
The regions concerned are Montreal, Mauricie, Lanaudière, Laurentides, Laval, Montérégie, Centre-du-Québec, Capitale-Nationale and Chaudière-Appalaches.
“After a very cold week, warm air is arriving from the south, but surfaces are still below freezing. Therefore, we can expect icy and slippery surfaces this weekend with rain or freezing drizzle,” explains meteorologist at Environment and Climate Change Canada, Gina Ressler, in an interview.
During the day on Friday, areas of western Quebec, such as around Val-d’Or, could experience an episode of rain or freezing drizzle. For most areas of the St. Lawrence Valley, this precipitation is mainly forecast from Saturday evening to Sunday morning.
According to Environment Canada forecasts, a few millimeters of freezing rain could fall, but enough to affect road conditions with icy roads and sidewalks.
However, the amounts of rain that will follow until Monday will be greater, potentially ranging from 20 to 30 mm. They could reach up to 50 mm in certain places along the St. Lawrence and further north in higher lands.
“The icy surfaces will not last long due to a low pressure coming from Texas. The ice will therefore melt on Sunday and Monday with warmer temperatures and a good amount of rain,” says Ms. Ressler.
With such weather conditions, the level of rivers will need to be monitored for the first part of next week, she adds.
Quebec is expected to see a break in precipitation on New Year’s Eve, before another system likely moves into the southern part of the province.
“We are in an active period in Eastern Canada. We can therefore expect depressions, precipitation and temperature variations,” explains Ms. Ressle, who invites the public to monitor forecasts and alerts from Environment Canada over the coming days.
Smog warning
The federal agency also published a smog warning on Friday for several areas of southern Quebec. It mentions that “high concentrations of pollutants are expected and will lead to poor air quality, particularly in population centers where pollutant emissions are greater”.
“For the last two days, I think, we have had an anticyclone over Quebec and the air is very stagnant. So all pollutants stay near the surface. I think that in Quebec, wood heating is the main source of smog or pollutants in the air,” explains Ms. Ressler.
Children with asthma and people with respiratory or heart conditions are recommended to avoid strenuous physical activities outdoors until the smog warning is lifted. The entire population is also invited to do their part by limiting, in particular, the use of fireplaces and wood stoves.
