Torrential rains drenched southern Quebec on Friday, breaking the record for rainfall in Montreal. The rain came in the wake of tropical storm Debby and a low pressure system that had formed over the Great Lakes.
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada figures, the city received 157 millimetres of rain on Friday, surpassing the previous all-time daily record for rainfall set back in November 1996.
As of 9 a.m. on Saturday, more than 140,000 Hydro Quebec customers were still without power. At the worst of the outages, Hydro-Québec reported more than 550,000 clients without power.
The hardest-hit regions are in the Townships and Laval — each with more than 50,000 homes and businesses without power.
The Crown corporation said around 200 workers were out in the field on Saturday morning to solve the issue. More are expected to lend a hand throughout the day.
Spokesperson Louis-Olivier Batty said a lot of the problems were due to the strong winds bringing down branches on lines and flooding in Hydro-Québec sub-stations.
La Macaza, a municipality about 170 kilometres northwest of Montreal in the Laurentians region, has declared a state of emergency on Friday. It has since opened a shelter for victims and an emergency co-ordination centre.
Several residents in the province have been trapped by floodwaters, according to Urgence Québec.
The agency encourages people to check their municipality’s social media pages and websites for crucial information about disaster relief.
A boil water advisory is in effect for several areas including Boucherville, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, the Longueuil borough of Saint-Hubert and part of Vieux-Longueuil. Officials blame an electrical failure which led to technical issues and a drop in pressure.
They recommend that residents boil their water for at least one minute before consumption until further notice.