Heavy snow is causing widespread power outages in regions across Quebec, according to Hydro-Quebec on Tuesday. “Wet, heavy snow combined with strong winds has weakened vegetation, which is falling onto the network,” the Crown corporation states. “We are mobilizing the necessary teams to restore service as soon as possible.” Hydro-Quebec says it has 800 people on the ground to restore power as soon as possible. “This snow comes in a little early this year, and there are still quite a few leaves on the trees that make the heavy snow,” Hydro-Quebec’s Cendrix Bouchard told Andrew Carter with CJAD 800. “The snow we’re receiving is very wet and heavy. It causes the branches and the trees to lean on the network. That’s what’s causing those outages.” According to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), about 20 cm of snow fell in downtown Montreal overnight. READ MORE: Why Environment Canada got Montreal’s snowstorm forecast wrong The snowfall resulted in hundreds of 911 calls, primarily for electrical issues, including broken wires and transformer malfunctions. Anyone flying out of Montreal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport should check their flight status before leaving home. 10:30 p.m. Most outages in Montreal are resolved. Some 99,443 addresses remain without power. See the regions most heavily affected here: 9:15 p.m. Outages are slowly resolved throughout the evening, especially in the Montreal area. Still, some 118,240 addresses are without power. See the regions most heavily affected here: 7:00 p.m. Outage numbers dwindled throughout the day, though 136,979 addresses are still without power. See the regions most heavily affected here: 2:23 p.m. Outages have dropped by more than 50,000 as the snow begins to taper off. There are currently 256,619 addresses across Quebec without electricity See the regions most heavily affected here: 11:39 a.m. Outage numbers have improved slightly and now stand at 313,731 addresses affected. See the regions most heavily affected here: 10:11 a.m. There are currently 360,321 addresses in the dark. See the regions most heavily affected here: 8:48 a.m. There are 369,803 homes across Quebec without power. See the regions most heavily affected here: 7:04 a.m. The number of clients without power has gone up to 379,390, primarily in the Montérégie region. See the regions most heavily affected here: 6:16 a.m. At this time, there are 372,900 addresses without power. Most of the homes are in the Montérégie region, with 109,569 customers without power. See the regions most heavily affected here: School closures The following schools are closed due to the weather: Centre de services scolaire des Affluents Centre de services scolaire des Grandes-Seigneuries Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys Centre de services scolaire des Patriotes Centre de services scolaire de Saint-Hyacinthe English Montreal School Board Lester B. Pearson School Board Riverside School Board Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board
