Breakdown of energy supply systems

Hydro-Quebec says almost 300,000 homes are without power on Tuesday afternoon after a significant amount of snow fell across southern Quebec in the first early snowfall of the season.
According to the utility’s power outages board, as of early afternoon on Tuesday, around 284,000 addresses out of 4.4 million in Quebec do not have power. In the morning hours, almost 400,000 customers were without power.
The majority of those customers are in Montreal and the surrounding areas.
Around 27,000 customers are without power in Montreal, down from about 50,000 in the morning. Another 93,000 in Monteregie, and almost 10,000 in Laval.
Environment Canada had issued a snowfall warning on Sunday for parts of southern and central Quebec, including Gatineau, Montreal, Quebec City and up towards Baie-Comeau.
It said a low-pressure system had been affecting Quebec since Sunday afternoon, bringing a “mixed bag of precipitation.” Most areas north of the St. Lawrence River had snow accumulation, while the south saw a mixture of snow, freezing rain and rain.
There was a second burst on Monday evening that brought additional snowfall for the southern and central parts of the province, Environment Canada said.
“This caused numerous power outages in several regions. Road conditions remain difficult in some areas due to the slippery and snowy roads,” it said.
A summary by the weather agency said Montreal’s downtown area received about 20 centimetres of snow, while the area towards the airport saw eight centimetres.
Tuesday’s weather forecast in Montreal is calling for a temperature steady near -1 C with a wind chill of -7.