Major Montreal-area routes closed due to heavy rain

Part of the Decarie Expressway was forced to close to motorists Wednesday afternoon as heavy rainfall wreaked havoc for many Montreal-area commuters at the start of the afternoon rush hour.

The northbound lane of the Décarie was closed between Côte-St-Luc Road and Highway 40 due to “water accumulation,” the Ministry of Transport’s Quebec511 X account.

The ramp from Highway 15 south to Highway 40 east is also closed to drivers.

Environment and Climate Change Canada has the Greater Montreal Area under a rainfall warning on Wednesday as the remnants of Hurricane Beryl pass over the region. Upwards of 70 millimetres of rain is expected over southern Quebec until Thursday.

There are also reports of water leaking into the Jean-Talon metro station.

Another major route affected by the rain is Highway 13 north. The northbound lanes are closed between Hickmore Street and Highway 520.

Roberto Piovesan was driving a 53-foot semi-trailer at around 2:30 p.m. on Cote-Vertu Road, heading East at Begin Street, when he was forced to stop due to the weather. 

“The highway was flooded and the service road was flooded,” he said.

Piovesan said Highway 40 East is completely flooded.

“If you go in there with a car, you’ll be under the water,” he said, adding that the westbound lanes will soon be flooded.

“That’ll be underwater within 20 minutes,” he said.

He added that the service roads are flooded as well and that he’s never seen anything like it in the three decades he’s been driving his truck.

He said he saw a motorcyclist try to drive through the water and lose control of his bike.

“He got up, but I think his motorcycle is underwater right now,” he said.

Up to 70 mm of rain expected 

The transport ministry says a number of roads are closed or partially closed due to the weather, including Moulins Road under the Bonaventure Expressway.

Environment and Climate Change Canada has the Greater Montreal Area under a rainfall warning on Wednesday as the remnants of Hurricane Beryl pass over the region. Upwards of 70 millimetres of rain is expected over southern Quebec until Thursday.

Quebec provincial police say they are aware of “major impediments” on Montreal-area roads and are monitoring them. So far, there haven’t been any reports of serious collisions.

The City of Montreal also said it is closely monitoring the situation and officials are “ready to intervene if necessary.” It is reminding homeowners it has tips to protect homes from heavy rain on its website.

Hydro-Quebec is reporting that nearly 12,000 customers are without electricity as of 3:30 p.m. The bulk of the outages are in the Montérégie (6,358) and Montreal (5,250).

Many flights have been delayed and some have been cancelled at the Montreal-Trudeau International Airport. 

More to come.