Strong thunderstorms possible today in Montreal

A very warm and humid air mass remains in place across eastern Ontario and southern Quebec this morning with temperatures already above 21C (70F) in Montreal. The Montreal area had a very warm Tuesday with highs between 28C and 30C (83-86F). Some thunderstorms are affecting areas south and east of Montreal this morning, but the main threat will come this afternoon.

It will be a muggy day with showers and thunderstorms developing anytime after the noon hour and a high near 29C (85F). Thunderstorm activity will begin along a cold front early this afternoon, first in the Ottawa Valley and then moving into the St. Lawrence Valley, Quebec and New England. Some strong storms are possible with the main threat being dangerous lightning, heavy rainfall and gusty winds possible with any storms. The severe weather threat will taper off after 5pm for Montreal. The rain will bring a brief break in the humid weather with cooler temperatures forecast for Thursday. The heat and humidity will build again Friday into Saturday with another round of thunderstorms forecast late Saturday into Sunday.

Above & Below: Houston was added yesterday to the long list of Texas communities suffering from devastating flooding. (TWC Photos)

TEXAS FLOODING
Just a brief update on the catastrophic flooding that is taking place in Texas and Oklahoma. Large areas of both states remain under water this morning after days of thunderstorms which dumped up to 2 feet of rainfall. Added to that list was Houston, Texas where severe flash flooding early Tuesday morning claimed at least 5 lives. The death toll has exceeded 18 in the southern plains with at least 13 still missing. The flooding Tuesday in Houston was caused by a series of slow moving thunderstorms that dumped 6 to 12 inches of rain in just a few hours. Highways and large areas of the city were overwhelmed by flood waters form sewers and neighbouring bayous and streams. Across Texas the damage is unimaginable with hundreds of homes destroyed.