Glaze Ice storm in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in April 2023.
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Info on the weather event:
On April 5, 2023 before the Easter weekend, a powerful late-season storm moved into the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region bringing widespread freezing rain, ice pellets, hail and heavy rains. Ahead of the storm, mild air flooded the region and a cold front undercut the mildness, destabilizing the atmosphere. The unsettled weather prompted tornado watches in southwestern Ontario and heavy rain warnings across the province. Persistent winds through the low-lying valleys of the Ottawa and the St. Lawrence rivers kept surface temperatures hovering just below freezing for most of the day. The bad mix led to several hours of freezing rain and rain with a few early season “thundersnows”. Hearing thunder and the ping of freezing ice balls bouncing off surfaces created a real buzz across eastern Ontario and southern Québec. The ugly weather then featured up to twelve continuous hours of freezing rain in Montréal and nine in Ottawa. Ice accretion amounts totalled 30 to 37 mm in Montréal, 25 to 30 mm in Ottawa-Gatineau, and 15 to 25 mm in central Québec. Accompanying wind gusts of 60 to 70 km/h for two days added enormous stress to ice-encased utility lines and trees.

Where heavy rain fell on still-frozen ground, localized flooding swamped backyards and fields and filled basements. Ice build-up on trees and power lines caused extensive damage, including the loss of 300 trees in Montréal. Power outages topped one million customers in Québec including half a million in Montréal and 200,000 in Ontario. Thousands were still without power two days later. There were numerous vehicle accidents and traffic was slowed or stopped on several routes. Sidewalks were also coated with treacherous ice. Ottawa’s light-rail transit went down leaving dozens of commuters waiting hours to be evacuated. Fallen branches and limbs littered streets and properties, damaging cars and smashing windshields. Sadly this ice storm took two lives in Québec. Rising temperatures the next day created the ominous sight and sound of ice falling from trees, power lines and balconies. Numerous businesses were closed including clinics and schools, although libraries remained opened to assist as electricity recharging stations. Property losses from floods, winds and icing topped $335 million from Sarnia to Saguenay.

Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/top-ten-weather-stories/2023.html