More than 35,000 Hydro-Quebec clients are still without electricity Friday morning after thunderstorms battered the region, and a heat wave continues. As many as 140,000 clients lost power Thursday night, with the Laurentians and Lanaudiere the hardest hit. As of 11 a.m. Friday, those two regions had 15,442 and 13,803 outages, respectively. Laval had another 2,878 without electricity. Hydro-Québec confirmed that these power outages were caused by Thursday’s thunderstorms that swept through these regions. Audrey St-Pierre, a spokesperson for Hydro-Québec, said 200 teams of workers have been dispatched to restore service. “All of our teams are monitoring the storm system’s progress to see where we’ll need to take action,” she added. A statement on Hydro-Quebec’s website warning people to stay safe. “Weather conditions may have caused downed power lines in some areas,” the statement reads. “For your safety, do not touch them and keep your distance, as they may still be energized even if they are on the ground. If you see a downed power line, call 911 so the area can be secured.” Environment Canada says strong winds accompanying the thunderstorms uprooted many trees across southern Quebec, knocking down power lines. The Montréal-Trudeau International Airport recorded wind gusts of 96 kilometres per hour. “As I sat working at our dining room table last evening, I watched our neighbours’ towering maple tree split in half and fall towards our house,” Diane James told CTV News from Greenfield Park, in Longueuil. Heat wave continues Friday will see no relief from the heat wave that has gripped southern Quebec for the past few days. Temperatures are expected to exceed 30 degrees Celsius again, but will feel like over 40. An Environment Canada heat warning remains in effect for the Montreal area. On Wednesday afternoon, the humidex reached 44 in Montreal and 42 in Quebec City. Regions north of Montreal are also bearing the heat, as Environment Canada’s warnings predicted that temperatures could hover around 30 degrees Celsius on Thursday, with humidex readings ranging from 35 to 40. Temperatures and humidity will begin to drop only starting Saturday morning, according to the federal agency. Pool hours extended During this heat wave, the City of Montreal has extended swimming hours at certain pools. “The most important thing for the coming days will be the safety of the most vulnerable people,” said Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada, explaining in particular that community workers “are making the rounds at encampments for people experiencing homelessness” and that “door-to-door services are being set up” for “seniors living alone.” - With files from The Canadian Press
