Quebec flood watch: vigilance still needed, but risk has dropped a notch

Tension over the risk of flooding has dropped a notch in southwestern Quebec thanks to favourable weather.

On the one hand, precipitation was lower than initially forecast at the beginning of the week and, on the other hand, the temperature drop is slowing down the snow melt.

No major flooding was reported in Quebec on Wednesday, and the civil security officials reported only five locations with moderate flooding.

Three of them are in Lanaudiere and were caused by Lake Maskinongé in Saint-Gabriel-de-Brandon, the Ouareau River in Rawdon and L'Assomption River in Joliette.

The other two were the result the Rivière du Nord overflowing at Saint-Jérôme in the Laurentians and the Rivière Saint-Charles in Quebec City.

There were also 18 minor floods reported, mainly in the Outaouais, Montreal, Laurentians and Lanaudière regions, and 22 other rivers across the province are being monitored.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 19, 2023.