Thunderstorm smashes Trois-Rivires, cutting power and flooding streets

Tens of thousands of Hydro-Quebec customers lost power in Trois-Rivires Tuesday afternoon after a violent thunderstorm slammed the city, flooding streets, knocking down trees and soaking anybody unlucky enough to be caught outside.

Images and videos captured in the city during the storm show strong winds, heavy rain and hail.

"Our teams are on the ground to help people isolated or heavily impacted by precipitation," the city wrote on its Facebook page. "We will respond by priority."

Water accumulated in some streets to the point that it reached the headlights of cars in some areas, and nearly submerged cars in others.

People were stuck in their vehicles in some cases. Police and firefighters were conducting rescue operations around the city.

At its peak, Hydro-Quebec reported at least 30,000 customers lost power.

The city's transportation department warned that traffic was slowed in some areas not just by water, but also by debris in the road.

The city dispatched public works crews to unblock sewers and clear the streets cluttered with downed trees.

In its social media post, Trois-Rivires warned people totravel only if necessary for now.

After temperatures climbed into the 30s across southern Quebec, many regions, including Montreal and Laval, were under a severe thunderstorm watch, according to Environment Canada.