Segacs's World I Know

Posts Tagged ‘weather’

• It’s Wednesday, aka humpday. (Which could have multiple meanings depending on who you ask.)
• Fajita Wednesday at 3 Amigos is the perfect midweek pick-me-up. Especially with those really good frozen strawberry pina coladas. Mmmmmm.
• It’s too early to be this cold and mid-winter-like! I’m in total denial. I’m still insisting on wearing my fall jacket, and I’ve yet to change my tires.
• There’s nothing like spending time with someone who has just returned home after a decade-long absence and is completely enthralled by the snow and cold to make you appreciate it laugh at them.
• Do sheep shrink when it rains?

This time the snow is real. It’s falling and sticking to stuff. We’re expected to accumulate about 5 centimeters when it’s all over.

Of course, that’ll all wash away this afternoon when the temperature climbs and it changes to rain… but that’s a good thing, cause this procrastinator hasn’t yet changed her tires. (Yeah, I know, spare me the lecture).

Yes, it’s snowing.

Winter’s officially here.

Winter is definitely approaching. It’s been chilly and rainy most of the month. And it’s now getting dark super-early thanks to us having changed the clocks last night. But today was one of those perfect fall days that makes people want to go out and enjoy the sunshine. Here are a few shots from about town:

And tomorrow, Halloween. We all know what that means: Chocolate goes on sale on Tuesday!

Hurricane Wilma is heading towards Florida in what seems like an extra underline to this year’s horrible “act of God” season:

Tropical Storm Wilma is the 21st named storm of the 2005 season and is expected to become a hurricane before heading to Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula and possibly the battered U.S. Gulf coast by the end of the week.

The last time this many storms formed since record-keeping began 154 years ago was in 1933.

Am I the only one who finds it a bit anachronistic that insurance companies still refer to “acts of God” in those words in their policies?

Still, I bet the religious nuts – the ones who believe that the end of the world is imminent – are having a field day this year. Hurricanes, tropical storms, earthquakes, tsunamis… it’s all way too biblical for my taste.

Here in Montreal, the chief effects of Hurricane Katrina have been a bit of rain and higher gas prices. Not much of a price to pay, considering.

It’s times like this when I’m grateful to live in Montreal; we may get cold weather and ice storms, but at least we avoid the more disastrous weather phenomena such as earthquakes, tsunamis or hurricanes.

Residents of New Orleans are evacuating ahead of the expected devastation of Hurricane Katrina:

A statement from the National Weather Service in Slidell, near New Orleans, Louisiana, warned that much of the affected area “will be uninhabitable for weeks, perhaps longer.”

With highways out of the city jammed and people seeking refuge in the Superdome, things are certain to be a mess there for a while. I guess that’s what happens when you build a city below sea level. Here’s hoping that everyone stays safe.

Mayor Gerald Tremblay is promising $10 billion to fix the infrastructure and drainage systems in Montreal, after yesterday’s flooding:

Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay called the sudden downpour of rain an “act of God.” But he spoke Wednesday about the need for the city to take steps to ensure such acts don’t end up causing headaches for residents every time they occur.

“We can’t correct a system that has been in place 50-60 years ago and that has to be revised for the 21st century,” said Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay.

“That’s why we have to invest billions of dollars.”

Tremblay has promised to devote $10 billion over the next 20 years to replace the system, and he has the full support of Quebec Premier Jean Charest.

Let’s put aside the issue of whether newer is better, in light of the fact that one of the worst spots is the brand-new L’Acadie interchange, just completed this year after millions of dollars of taxpayer money were spent. Our system isn’t bad because it’s old; it’s bad because it’s bad. Montreal has lousy roads, legendary potholes, poorly-maintained pipes and water mains that have a habit of bursting in the wintertime. This isn’t new and it’s not going away anytime soon.

These are empty promises for Tremblay to make. Today, he’s placating angry people who have water damage in their basements or who got stuck on flooding highways yesterday. And by the time he actually has to spend a dime, someone else will be in office – both his office and Charest’s. They’ll have other spending priorities, like referendums or language police. And we’ll all forget about it… until the next flood.

It’s been almost 15 years since the big flood of ‘87, and it seems today we’re getting an anniversary reminder.

The massive amount of rain that is pouring at the moment has turned streets into rivers, underpasses into giant lakes, and forced closures of major arteries causing traffic nightmares all over the city. The Decarie Expressway is closed in both directions, as is the 40 at L’Acadie and the 13 at the Dorval tunnel. Dozens of smaller roads and underpasses are blocked off or impassable. Sirens can be heard everywhere as frantic motorists try to avoid getting stuck underwater.

I skipped my evening plans when I realized I’d never get there, and instead simply drove home – which proved not to be so simple. But now I’m watching the rain from my window.

Visuals to come as soon as they’re available. In the meantime, if you need to be out in this, be careful.

Update: Here are some images from Cyberpresse:

Decarie Expressway

Another of Decarie Expressway

More cars stuck on the Expressway

People had to abandon their cars as the Decarie flooded

Update #2: La Presse has some eyewitness accounts from people who were stuck on the Decarie River – er – Expressway this afternoon. About 15 people had to crawl out of their cars from the windows or the sunroofs. One woman lost her shoes and had to walk barefoot in several feet of water. Another man, with water up to his arms, had to push his car out of the water. People who had to escape their cars were given blankets and coffee in a nearby church. Canoe also reported numerous basement floods in about 150 homes.

Well, the weather finally broke with overnight rain that closed the 40 at the new L’Acadie interchange due to flooding:

The Metropolitain Expressway has been closed in both directions near the l’Acadie circle. Several vehicles had to be abandoned because of sudden accumulations of water. Some drivers sought refuge on the roofs of their cars.

The construction at L’Acadie that took millions of tax dollars and several years was finally completed this year. But now it seems like the road and the drainage system can’t handle a little summer rain.

The spokeswoman from Transport Quebec on the radio this morning was trying to compare today’s rain to the flood of ‘87, when over 100mm fell within 2 hours. But moments earlier, an Environment Canada meteorologist said that the amount of rain that fell was fairly typical for a summer shower, and certainly nothing approaching the ‘87 flood level. Transport Quebec doesn’t seem to want to admit that they bungled the road work, nor do they seem inclined to do anything to fix it.

Ain’t it great being a taxpayer, knowing our money is so well spent?