Snowstorm continues its tear through eastern Quebec

A winter storm is still wreaking havoc ineastern Quebec today.

Winter storm warnings remainin effect for the Gasp, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean and the North Shore, among other regions.

• Snow, heavy winds wallop eastern Quebec, Atlantic

The North Shore region got 10 to 20 centimetres of snow overnight, but there may be 50 centimetreson the ground by the time the storm passes.

"On top of that, there are heavy winds reaching 70 to 80 km/h in terms of gusts, so that's generating a whiteout over the eastern sections of Quebec at the moment," said Environment Canada meteorologist Maxime Desharnais.

The snow and strong winds will stick around all day, he said.

Power outages, roads closed

Hydro-Qubec says as of 8p.m., just over 1,000clients were without power, mostly on theGasp Peninsula and Magdalen Islands.

Spokeswoman Catherine Bujold said the main challenge now is getting enough trucks out to that region. The power utilityis working with the Transport Ministry to escort Hydro trucks from other areas ofthe province through the closed roads.

• Consult Hydro-Qubec'soutage map here

Transports Qubec saidmany roads in the area are snow covered and visibility ranges from fair to poor. More than 800 kilometres of road alongQuebec's North Shore had to be closed throughout the day.

As of Friday night, these stretches of road are still closed:

• Highway 132fromTourelletoMarsoui because of water accumulation.
• Highway132fromroute des Faillestoroute Bilodeau because of utility work.
• Highway 132fromroute de Petit-Pabostoroute Hamilton because of water accumulation.
• Highway 138fromVieux-Fort toBrador because of harsh weather conditions.

Some ferry crossings have also been cancelled betweenMataneand the North Shoreand in the Magdalen Islands.

Transports Qubec spokesman Guillaume Paradis advised those planning to travel on the roads today to check conditions on the Qubec 511website before leaving.

Storm surges lap North Shore road

Those living near the coast in the Lower Saint Lawrence, in the NorthShore, theLower North Shore and in the Gaspregions also have storm surgesto deal with.

About 20 residents inSept-les were forced to leave their homes because of flooding. Sept-les MayorRjean Porlier said the areas of the city most affected by the high water areVal-Marguerite, Gallix,Clark City and alongshoreline.

The surging sea has also damaged some homes in Kegaska, a small village on the Lower North Shore.

One video, posted to Facebookby Monique Hounsell ofNatasquan, on the North Shore, shows sea water creeping inland. Hounsell remarks that the waves are lapping the road well before high tide.

Storm surge in Natashquan

8 years ago

Duration 0:32

A Facebook video posted by Monique Hounsell in Natashquan in the North Shore of Quebec shows coastal flooding invading the roads.

Environment Canada's Desharnaiswarned thatthe water levels aremuch higher than normal, meaning there's a high risk of flooding and otherdamage along the coast.

Calm in Quebec City

Quebec City got 20 to 25 centimetres yesterday and another five fell Friday morning.

Quebec City digs out after snowstorm

8 years ago

Duration 0:45

A snowstorm dumped about 30 centimetres of snow on Quebec City Thursday and Friday. Now, the cleanup begins.

Areas betweenMontreal to aboutTrois-Riviressaw from 15 to 20 centimetres and will get between two and 10 more today.

The same system is bringingsnow, rain and strong winds to parts of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward IslandandNewfoundland and Labrador over the course of the day.