Trav.

Here is what I can remember of the March 4th, 1971 snowstorm.

First, when I woke up in the morning, I headed toward the kitchen and I noticed it was unusually dark towards the back of the house. I soon realised that the kitchen windows and the door were completely covered with snow, blocking all the light of day. I rushed to the front of the house, to realise that it was blowing snow heavily. I was sooooooo happy to see this huge amount of snow, covering the cars completely (all you could see was their shape) and I immediately thought that schools would be closed. March 4th 1971 was a Thursday! My mother turned on the radio and they were naming all the schools that were closed.......and they finally named MY school(I think all schools were mentionned), which made me jump to the ceiling with joy!!! I knew I would have all day to play with my friends in the snow, which I did all day long! I had to step out of the house from the front, because it was impossible to get out from the back, because too much snow had been blown by the wind on the house. When I got around the house and got in the backyard, I could see the wall covered in white and the snow had accumulated in front of the door on the balcony, and on the windows. I had fun "unearthing" the door and "digging" a hole in the snow to get to the window and put my face inside, so that my parents could see outside from the kitchen window! Anyway, I played all day outside, and it snowed the whole day, with very strong winds, which was blinding me at times...On that evening, the snow had stopped (or almost) and you could not hear one single car.....none were able to go around in that thick of snow! I walked to the corner of the street where I still live, and realised that Henri-Bourassa boulevard (which is a 8 lanes boulevard, 4 lanes each directions) was filled with abandonned cars and trucks, left by their drivers in the middle of the boulevard......and only snowmobiles were able to circulate around the abandonned cars. It felt as if we were in the countryside! Needless to say, there was no school the next day either, which was a Friday, so it turned out we had a 4 day weekend.....and this little boy was very very happy indeed!

Here is a text I found on the internet, about that storm, with the link, in case you are interested! I will NEVER forget March 4th 1971 and Montrealers who lived through it, say the same thing when we discuss it. I think that it is not only the 48cm of snow we received on that day, but the strong winds, that made it all so "bad".....or so "good", depending on your perspective! I think that last Friday, December 16th 2005, was a piece of cake, compared to the 1971 storm!

http://bilan.usherbrooke.ca/bilan/pages/evenements/2294.html

Tempête du jeudi 4 mars 1971

"Tout le Québec est paralysé par ce que les observateurs considèrent comme la plus grosse tempête de neige des dernières décennies. Écoles, commerces et bureaux ferment leurs portes.

En tout, environ 50 centimètres de neige s'abattent sur la province en moins de 24 heures. Ces précipitations s'accompagnent de violentes rafales de vent pouvant aller jusqu'à 100 kilomètres/heure. Dans les villes, les autobus cessent de rouler alors que seules les motoneiges peuvent circuler aisément. De nombreuses pannes d'électricité forcent les résidents de plusieurs municipalités du Québec à évacuer leur domicile pour trouver refuge dans des lieux sûrs. On dénombre une trentaine de mort à la suite de cette tempête."

About the storm of July 5th 1999, sorry, but I can't remember. I do remember the flood of July 14th 1987 though, with Décarie blvd, which turned into a public pool for cars. Our house was not affected by that downpour, thank God! And who does not remember the 5 consecutive days of freezing rain, from January 5th to January 9th, 1998? Woof, that was quite something, and I think I was very lucky, as I only lost power for 2 hours in all, during the night while I was sleeping!

I hope this answers your questions, Trav!

Take care

Pierre

Hi Pierre,

Thank you for sharing your experiences with me. It really did seem like something. I've read your entire experience twice! It seemed exciting! I'm happy to hear that you had fun with your friends, but then again, the situation was scary! I mean, 50 cm. That's practically an extra 20 cm more than a standard 30 cm ruler!

As for the storms I mentioned, I'm happy to hear your comparison of the 1987 storm. My parents said the same about Decarie. In fact, I still can't believe that Decarie looked like that. I was pessimistic about their description, but now I see it's true. I know I was only 3, actually, not even 3 yet! My birthday was a week from there. Plus, my mom told me that she had to pull me away from the window because I was watching! I was already fascinated then! But I did not know the danger, obviously. I was telling Enkil about this storm, but it was hard to believe.

The storm of July 1999 was something else. I remember it so well and how scary it was. It was something like 2-3 flashes per second. It was in the morning at 2:00 a.m. We were hiding in the stair way and staying down. The thunder was also fearsome and the rain was lashing. I'll try to find something of it. Do you know any web sites where we can find historical news?

As for the ice storm, well, no one can forget that. I'll be happy to tell you my entire story about this one! However, I'll write it up for you soon, not to mention that electrical storm. I'm surprised that you didn't see this one, Pierre! Are you a heavy sleeper?

Take care, Pierre. Thank you so much. Really, you have some incredible stories, too!

Trav.

Hey guys,

Well, for the final display, it looks like we're getting either rain or wet snow along with a high of 2 Celsius. This will help to get rid of some snow along like today. Our low is, I suspect, at or just above 0 C. Winds will be mostly calm from the West at anywhere from 5-10 km/h and thus a very low windchill, or not any at all!

It pleases me greatly to see the return of rain after so long. However, it looks like we're getting some snow for Christmas, so that will be nice, as long as it isn't much.

All in all, a pleasant viewing night for the last display.

Trav.

I'm really glad to see a -1°C for tomorrow night. Just a few weeks ago, it was said that this weekend will be in the -20°C. And now it changed to -1°C, making it a "comfortable" night for fireworks in Winter, lol.

If it does snow, that would be a real treat!

And if all goes right, I'll be able to attend the show.

Hard to believe my first college session is finally over and I'm going watch fireworks tomorrow night, despite a few little left over exams that I have to do in January because of the strike days!

Hi Enkil,

Well, it's very possible to see some moderate flurries to light snow this evening as the temperature will hover at the freezing point. However, chances are that there could also be a rain-snow mix, but I think it's more favorable for snow or just a barely mixed bag. Winds will still be light, too. This way, the windchill will be down to nothing or just very mild making it ideal. Winds will be from the W at about 10 km/h now, so the windchill will be about -3 C.

I was very happy to see rain/drizzle yesterday afternoon and it did put a smile on my face. I did dream of a thunderstorm last night but I felt lousy this morning because it was only a dream! I miss those hot summery days already. But I was happy to see the mercury reading at 1 degree this morning and it still is now! It's not much, but it will help to get rid of some snow, at least.

In the meantime, this afternoon, it will be a battle between rain vs. snow. Go rain!!!!!!!!! Not a bad week on the way, at least, for now.

Trav.

Final weather report for Christmas Day!

Well, as I mentioned, I was VERY happy to see rain today, though I know we all want snow! However, we might get a mixed bag today, but I think it will be mostly rain with some snow later on, but wet snow. I believe the snow will be here tomorrow, though I'm not sure of quantity, but I do know that winds will pick up tonight into tomorrow, so perhaps a "possible" small Winter snowstorm. Some moisture also present out there with dewpoints measure just about 0 C. Anyhow, still a good looking week on the way.

Once again, today is an epic battle between Rain vs. Snow! Fight!

Merry Christmas and best wishes,!

~Travis.~

Trav,

Sorry for the delay in replying. I had visitors at home for Christmas and then, I went to celebrate New Year's Day in Ontario.

Now that you mention that electrical storm in July of 1999, I remember it. I just didn't know when exactly it occured. I remember waking up in the middle of the night and seeing these lightnings, one after the other, non-stop! I remember a similar storm when I was real young (maybe 6 or 7). It was during a Summer afternoon. My sister, mother and myself were in the kitchen, our backs glued to the refrigerator, watching the fierce thunderstorm outside. The wind was really strong and the lightnings were everywhere, thunder was deafening and the trees in our backyard were being whipped and battered violently by the wind. Even my mother was scared.....LOL. Thanks for jogging my memory, Travis. Of course, I would love to hear about what you experienced during those different events, related to bad weather!

Take care!

Pierre