Extreme cold warnings blanket the province of Quebec
After an extremely mild month of January, the province is bracing for a blast of arctic air that will move in tonight and last until Saturday. Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued extreme cold warnings that covers most of the province with wind chills expected to be between -38 and -42 across the South and -50 across Northern Quebec.
Extreme cold warnings are in effect across Quebec on Feb. 2, 2023.
An aggressive arctic front will push across the province on Thursday. The front will produce intense snow squalls that could cause near-zero visibility at times on the roads. Montreal is expecting flurries during the day with the intense burst of snow in time for the evening rush hour.
Futurecast for Feb. 2, 2023.
Environment Canada has issued snow squall watches across Southwestern Quebec warning motorists to be prepared for rapidly changing weather conditions resulting in hazardous travel as result of whiteouts, and possible black ice.
Behind the front, temperatures will drop rapidly Thursday night. Montreal will go from a high of -1C Thursday evening, to a low of -21 C in a matter of hours.
The night planner for Feb. 2, 2023.
The front will open the door to the polar vortex. Montreal will not only see its coldest air of the season, but its coldest air in years. The temperature on Friday night will drop to -27 C and the wind will make it feel closer to -40. The mercury is expected to stay below -20 C during the day on Saturday and the wind chill is expected to be around -30. Temperatures will begin to rise Saturday night.
Weekend weather forecast for Montreal on Feb. 2, 2023.
The last time Montreal recorded a daytime high below -20 C was on January 6, 2018.
Fortunately, the extreme cold will be short-lived. Temperatures will bounce back above the freezing mark on Sunday with about five centimetres of snow and milder air is in the foreacast for next week.
The seven-day forecast for the Montreal area starting Feb. 2, 2023.
The arctic air comes after a month of really mild temperatures in the province. Montreal saw a mean temperature of -4.6 C, which is more than five degrees above average. Snowfall for the city was nearly double the normal.
Temperatures and snowfall notes for Feb. 2, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
EXCLUSIVE | Security increased for prime minister's advisers after break-and-enter incidents
Ottawa Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the residence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's national security adviser, the second such incident involving one of his top aides in recent months.

'Nova Scotians' sense of safety was rocked': RCMP failures dominate inquiry's final report into 2020 mass shooting
A long list of failures by Nova Scotia RCMP leadership and policing systems dominate the final report into Nova Scotia's April 2020 mass shooting.
Memes, ski etiquette and that missing GoPro video: Highlights from the Gwyneth Paltrow trial
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
House abandoned by couple who 'disappeared' 8 years ago major eyesore for upscale Toronto street
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
UCP candidate, slammed for comments on pornography in schools, quits
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
Here's how to know if someone is struggling with a video game addiction: Expert
A scientist at CAMH says video games have similar addictive features to gambling which cause social isolation of the individual and dependency on the activity.
'No question there need to be changes': PM responds to Nova Scotia mass shooting commission report
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered a brief initial response to the final report from the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) into Canada's worst mass shooting, which claimed the lives of 22 people in Nova Scotia in 2020. Vowing changes will come, here's what Trudeau said in Truro, N.S.
TREND LINE | Poilievre surpasses Trudeau when it comes to preferred prime minister: Nanos
The federal Liberals are trending downward on three key measures while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has surpassed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau when it comes to the question of who Canadians would prefer now as their prime minister, according to Nanos Research.
Coroner rules against officer's 'suicide by cop' theory for Sammy Yatim inquest
A coroner has denied a request from a former Toronto police officer to explore a theory that a distraught teen he shot was committing "suicide by cop."