Tuesday evening ET — A major weather system is moving toward Quebec, and météo forecasts call for freezing rain in southern regions and heavy snow farther north, with Environment Canada warning the brief March warm-up will reverse later this week.
Storm details: freezing rain threat for Grand Montréal and surrounding regions
Forecasters say the approaching system will bring a range of precipitation types across Quebec. In the south — including Grand Montréal, the Outaouais, the Laurentides, the Mauricie, the Quebec City region and the Beauce — freezing rain is the principal threat, with rain expected to start before turning to ice.
Further north, meteorologists anticipate substantial snowfall with conditions favoring snow and blowing snow in areas such as Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Rimouski and the Gaspésie. Strong winds are also forecast for parts of the province, increasing the risk of reduced visibility from blowing snow and dangerous travel conditions.
Why now: a March thaw flips back to winter because of the incoming system
After a start-of-month warm spell that pushed temperatures above normal for the first two weeks of March in the south, the incoming depression is expected to reverse that trend. Models show a trajectory that could place some regions into colder air, creating the vertical temperature profile — warmer air overlying cold surface air — that produces a rapid sequence from rain to sleet to freezing rain.
February left Quebec unusually dry: Montréal recorded only 0. 2 mm of precipitation compared with a normal of 16. 9 mm, and most regions saw little snow accumulation, with the Gaspésie an exception. That recent dryness and the transient warm spell earlier this month set up sharp contrasts in temperature and ground conditions that increase the impact risk of this system.
Official response: Environment Canada alerts and meteorologists’ warnings
Environment Canada has issued special bulletins and meteorologists have highlighted freezing rain as the main concern across southern corridors. Meteorologist Raja Rapaic described the situation as a powerful system producing “a big storm” with snow and blowing snow in the north and significant ice accretion in the south.
In regions that first see rain then freezing rain, forecasts indicate a transition back to snow overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, which would extend hazardous conditions into the midweek period. Emergency services and road crews in affected zones have been put on heightened watch in preparation for rapid changes in surface conditions.
Next confirmed milestone: precipitation is expected to begin Tuesday evening ET. If the depression’s center tracks slightly farther south, municipalities in the Montreal corridor and adjacent regions could see longer durations of freezing rain and higher accumulations of ice, prolonging hazardous travel into Thursday.
