Around 400,000 homes still without power in Quebec due to severe thunderstorms
Powerful thunderstorms hit Quebec late Saturday afternoon and evening.
In all, Hydro-Québec reported 1,237 outages affecting 468,837 homes across the province.
According to Hydro-Quebec, over 90,000 homes were still without power at 10 a.m. in the Outaouais region and over 150,000 in the Laurentians.
The Crown corporation attributed the outages to "severe thunderstorms". In addition, around 100,000 customers in the Lanaudière region were experiencing power outages.
In total, Hydro Quebec reported 398,889 customers were experiencing power outages.
Major outages were also reported in the Quebec City and Mauricie regions.
In Val-des-Monts, in the Outaouais region, several trees fell on a cottage with residents inside. A mother and daughter were trapped inside the building, whose roof had collapsed.
In addition, a tree was hanging over the roof. The MRC des Collines police were able to safely evacuate the people from the residence, and they were not injured.
Environment Canada had issued an emergency alert on the national system for all television, radio and cellular phones in the Outaouais region.
Another tornado warning was issued around 5 p.m. on the national system for the Lanaudière region, including the cities of Joliette, Rawdon and Berthierville. It was reported that strong winds, intense rain and large hail hit the area.
Another alert was then issued for western Montreal and parts of the Laurentians, including Lachute and Saint-Jérôme.
By 10 p.m., severe thunderstorm and tornado watches were over for many parts of the province. However, severe thunderstorm warnings were still in effect in the greater Montreal area, the Eastern Townships and the Beauce.
MAJOR DAMAGE ACROSS PROVINCE
Strong winds were recorded in several locations, including Lake Memphremagog with gusts up to 151 km/h, Trois-Rivières with peaks of 96 km/h and Gatineau with 90 km/h.
The Montreal area was generally spared by the storms, which moved from Ontario through the Outaouais, Laurentians, Lanaudière and Mauricie regions to the Capitale-Nationale region late Saturday afternoon. The Eastern Townships and Chaudière-Appalaches regions were affected by another thunderstorm cell during the night, around 3 a.m. Sunday.
Several municipalities reported fallen trees and damage.
In Val-Morin, in the Laurentians, residents were asked to keep their drinking water consumption to a minimum: "Due to the power outage, the supply of water produced by our pumping stations is slowing down," the municipality wrote on its Facebook page.
In Lanaudière, two schools were damaged by the weather. They are the Sainte-Bernadette school in Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes and the Saint-Alphonse school in Saint-Alphonse-Rodriguez, according to a note published by the Centre de services scolaires des Samares, which said it was working with experts to assess the situation and "organize the return to class safely."
In the Outaouais region, several residents have shared photos on social networks of the Saint-Fidèle church in Fassett, whose bell tower collapsed.
-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 22, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
4th Indian national arrested, charged with murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Homicide investigators in B.C. say murder charges have been laid against a fourth Indian national in connection to the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a Surrey gurdwara last year.
'I am angry': Alberta farmers will continue fight over world class motorsport resort
The rolling hills leading to the hamlet of Rosebud are dotted with sprawling farms and cattle pastures -- and a sign sporting a simple message: No Race Track.
Man ticketed after allegedly trespassing again at Drake's Bridle Path mansion to get his bike
A man who tried to access Drake’s Bridle Path mansion earlier this week returned to the property Saturday and was apprehended again for allegedly trespassing, Toronto police say.
Couple randomly attacked, 1 stabbed, by group of teens in Toronto, police say
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Millions of Canadians have been exposed to potentially toxic chemicals, and they're not going anywhere
For decades, North Bay, Ontario's water supply has harboured chemicals associated with liver and developmental issues, cancer and complications with pregnancy. It's far from the only city with that problem.
Biden calls Trump 'unhinged,' says 'something snapped' in former president after he lost 2020 U.S. election
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday called Donald Trump “clearly unhinged” and claimed that “something snapped” in the former president after he lost the 2020 election.
Wildfire that forced evacuation of Fort Nelson, B.C., caused by tree falling on wires, mayor says
The wildfire that prompted the evacuation of more than 3,000 people near Fort Nelson, B.C., was caused by a tree falling on wires, according to the municipality's mayor.
Switzerland's Nemo wins 68th Eurovision Song Contest
Swiss singer Nemo won the 68th Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night with 'The Code,' an operatic ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing their nongender identity.
IN PICTURES Northern lights dance across the night sky in southern Ont.
From London, to Grand Bend, Collingwood and Guelph, here are some highlights of Friday night and Saturday morning's northern lights display.