PHOTOS: Powerful storms hit eastern Ontario, southern Quebec Sunday
Tens of thousands of customers were without power in Quebec after Sunday’s storms
A round of widespread severe thunderstorms swept through much of eastern Ontario and southern Quebec on Sunday afternoon, bringing strong winds, torrential rainfall, and power outages to the region. Sunday was likely Montreal’s wettest July day on record.
GET THE LATEST: Severe storms with high winds, flood risk sweeping Ontario, Quebec
High instability and ample moisture throughout the atmosphere provided plenty of fuel for storms to thrive as a cold front arrived during the day Sunday. The moisture-packed atmosphere made high wind gusts and localized flooding a particular risk throughout the day.
Numerous clusters of thunderstorms affected the area; one targeted southern Quebec while another developed over eastern Ontario.
Winds gusted to around 60 km/h at the Ottawa Airport as the thunderstorms passed overhead on Sunday afternoon. Montreal-Trudeau International Airport reported visibility of less than one kilometre and very heavy rainfall not long after.
Strong winds knocked down trees and power lines across the two provinces. Heavy rainfall led to localized flooding, especially in southern Quebec.
Montreal saw at least 77 mm of rain as of mid-afternoon on Sunday, with precipitation continuing through the early evening. This would make July 13, 2025, the city’s wettest July day on record—surpassing the 79.2 mm witnessed during Hurricane Beryl’s remnants just last year.
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Hydro-Quebec saw 60,000 customers without power at one point on Sunday, with the number down to around 33,000 customers without power as of 4:15 p.m. local time. Over in Ontario, storms knocked out power to a few thousand customers.
The risk for severe weather will continue into the early evening hours as the storms progress east across the region.
See some of the visuals from Sunday’s storms in Ontario and Quebec, below.
Header image submitted by Marie-Lise Valois in La Plaine, Quebec.