Montreal winter storm hampers drive, leads to flight cancellations

Southern Quebec was walloped with its first major storm of the season, with hazardous conditions, numerous accidents reported andflight delays.

Up to40 centimetresof snow areexpected by this evening.

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Many flights in and out of Montreal's Pierre ElliottTrudeauInternational Airport are delayed or cancelled.

The airport recommends checking the status of your flight before going to the airport.

The backlog in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa is also causing problemsin other provinces.

Roads and sidewalks are treacherous and snow is expected toaccumulate throughout the day.

Dozens of cars go off road

Transports Qubec is urging drivers tostay off the roads if possible.

"The roads are covered in snowwith reduced visibility so you have to be extremely careful today," spokespersonSarah Bensadounsaid.

Sret du Qubecspokesperson Mlanie Dumaresq says several dozen cars went off the road this morning in the Montreal area.

However, no major accidents have been reported so far.

Earlier this morning, over 2,000 Hydro-Qubeccustomersin Montreal werewithout electricity.

The affected areas included downtown Montreal, Outremont and LaSalle.

Power was restored by mid-morning.

Snow to halt this evening

Southern partsof the province are themost affected by the storm, including the Montreal area, the Laurentians and the Eastern Townships, and the Ottawa Valley,where 30 to 40 centimetres areexpected.

About15 centimetresare expected in the Quebec City region.

Winds of 30 to 60 kilometresan hour are also expected, particularlyover the St. Lawrence Valley.

Snow is expected toquickly taper offthis evening.

Environment Canadaalso issued freezing rain warnings for portions of southern Ontario, including the Bruce Peninsula and areas around Lake Simcoe.

The storm hitting Ontario and Quebec is part of a system that producing tornadoes and flooding in the U.S. Midwest and Southwest.

More than 40 people were killed in the United States during the Christmas holidays, including 11 in the Dallas area when twisters hit.