Over 43,000 homes across Quebec were still without power the morning after a short but powerful storm wreaked havoc across the province.

The microburst - a downdraft that moves in the opposite way of a tornado - hit the Montreal neighbourhood of NDG just after 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, creating a wall of rain that had Montrealers scrambling to get out of the storm. 

Hydro-Quebec officials said damage in some areas was so severe, parts of the network will need to be rebuilt before service can be restored.

 

On Wednesday morning, over 5,000 Hydro-Quebec clients in the area were still without power.

Among them is the Loyola Campus of Concordia University. The university issued a notice Wednesday morning that the campus will be closed for the day, and will remain closed until power is restored.

In Montreal the neighbourhood of NDG was badly hit, with trees coming down on dozens of blocks, as well as many trees being knocked down in NDG park.

Also badly hit were Cote-St-Luc, Dollard and Pointe-Claire, where 2,000 homes in each region are still without electricity.

CDN-NDG borough mayor Russell Copeman told CTV Montreal that power outages and road closures could continue for days.

"The only equivalent that I can remember was during the [1998] ice storm," Copeman said. "It's less widespread, but where it has happened-- the damage is just about comparable."

Copeman is urging all citizens in the affected areas to stay off of the sidewalks or out of areas where first responders will be moving debris. 

"[The storm] may have weakened certain trees, there may be branches hanging-- and there's another line of storms approaching," Copeman explained. 

Five boroughs dispatched help to clear the toppled trees and power lines down in the area. 

A notice issued by the borough stated that "borough employees, police officer, and firefighters will be working all night to clear our streets."

 

The area hit the hardest was located in the perimeter of Girouard, Coronation, Cote-Saint-Luc, and Sherbrooke Sts. 

On Mariette St., a tree that neighbours had been asking the city to remove for years was snapped in half.

A stained glass window also reportedly fell from the Empress Theatre on Sherbrooke street--a historic building that's stood abandoned since 1992. 

The area within NDG Park was nearly unrecognizable compared to its state earlier on in the day--strewn with branches and refuse from the severe winds. 

No major injuries were reported by Urgences Santé.

The Montreal Fire Department set up a command post in the area, and they activated their emergency measures centre to help coordinate all of the emergency responses now that the storm has abated. 

Police officers from the SPVM conducted door-to-door checks to make sure residents were safe inside their dwellings. 

A spokesman for the Montreal Fire Safety Authority said about 20 residences on one street in NDG had to be evacuated after snapped branches fell on transformers and homes.





Photos: Caroline Van Vlaardingen / CTV Montreal

At its peak at 4 p.m. Hydro Quebec reported these outages:

  • 63,000 in Montreal
  • 29,000 in the Monteregie
  • 14,000 in the Laurentians
  • 5,000 in Laval

Hydro crews have been deployed to help restore electricity

Real-time power updates available here.

More than 70,000 Hydro-Quebec customers were without electricity Tuesday night after severe thunderstorms ripped through southern Quebec, Montreal and the Laurentian region north of the city.

Most of the outages were in the Montreal area affecting more than 51,000 homes and businesses, with another 12,000 blackouts reported in the Laurentians and a further 6,000 in communities south of Montreal.

Hydro-Quebec spokesman Mathieu Rouy says the wind gusts were so violent, fallen trees and branches littered the streets, making it difficult for repair crews to get through.

One man even reported that a Dorval bus shelter was smashed due to the high winds and heavy rains.
 


A light pole crashed on Henri-Bourassa and Highway 13. A witness there said a woman has been injured, though that claim has not yet been confirmed by police.
 

The Strangers in the Night gala, set for Friday night, will have to do some scrambling -- the event is set to take place at Fairview Shopping Centre in Pointe-Claire, but the outdoor tent has collapsed due to the storm. Organizers tell CTV the event is set to go ahead as scheduled with a new tent.

Three calls for an ambulance were place from the Fairview shopping center as a result of the severe winds. Two people were taken to hospital, and one person was evaluated on-scene but ultimately refused treatment. 

The storm looked downright sinister from Ile Mercier in Ile Bizard.


video: Christina McCallum

Other pictures posted by residents also showed downed trees and wind-blown debris as far north as Lachute, about 85 kilometres north of Montreal.

Environment Canada is investigating claims that a tornado touched down in Lachute.

Public Security Minister Martin Coiteux also took to social media to assert that local authorities in Montreal and the Laurentians would be working through the night to resolve issues. 

With files from The Canadian Press.