Southwest Quebec expecting heavy rains, more flooding

Environment Canada has issued rainfall warnings for Montreal and much of southwestern Quebec for Sunday, which are raising the prospect of intensifying flooding along rivers in the region.

Regions covered by the warnings include the metro Montreal region, Drummondville-Bois-Francs, the Laurentians, Lanaudire, Pontiac and the Richelieu Valley.

The warning says 25 to 45 millimetres of rain could fall on Sunday alone. Temperatures of around zero early in the day could see the rain begin as freezing rain or snow in some regions.

Heavy rains are expected from Sunday through Tuesday. Combined with melting snow, the rainswill raisethe risk of flooding along a number of rivers across Southern Quebec.

The Beauceregion has been hard hit by flooding sparked in part by ice jams along the Chaudire River. At Beauceville, an ice jam around one-and-a-half kilometres long had officials on the lookout for further signs of flooding.

High water levels in the Yamaska and Chteauguay Rivers have also caused some flooding around St-Hyacinthe and Huntingdon.

• Huntingdon area floods as Chteauguay River overflows
• Flood alert issued as rising water threatens Acadie River
• Ottawa, eastern Ontario could see 50 to 75 mm of rain

Quebecs flood forecasting centre had warnings in effect for the following rivers:

• Chteauguay (Huntingdon)
• Des Anglais
• St-Franois (and Coaticook)
• Bcancour
• Nicolet
• Des Mille les
• Des Prairies
• Chaudire

The centre reported that as of 8 a.m. Saturday water levels along these rivers had either stabilized or lowered, but remain high.

The centre was also watchingice floesalong the following rivers for possible jams:

• de la Tortue
• Richelieu
• Yamaska(and tributaries)
• Noire (Ste-Pie)
• Etchemin
• du Sud
• du Livre
• Petite Nation
• Rouge
• du Nord
• Mascouche
• L'Assomption (including the Achigan, Ouareau, Noire Rivers)
• Bayonne
• Maskinong
• du Loup (Mauricie)
• Batiscan
• Sainte-Anne(Quebec)
• Portneuf
• Jacques Cartier
• St-Charles (including theLorette, des Hurons, Nelson, and Du BergerRivers)