Why yes, this is the warmest Christmas Day Montreal has seen
It was nearly 14 degrees Celsius on the afternoon of Dec. 25. In the past 79 years, the closest Montreal has come to that Christmas Day high was 1964, when the mercury almost hit 12 C.
Thursday’s high of 10 C was also a record-breaker, beating 1957’s 8 C.
The historical high for Dec. 26 is 12 C in 1984, which should remain unbroken this year. Montreal can expect a high of around 4 C Saturday, with flurries to lighten things up.
But what about Christmas Day 1980? It was a chilling minus-32.4 C.
Environment Canada historical records begin in 1941.
Heavy rainfall combined with the historic warm spell means many rivers are running high. Preventive evacuations were ordered shortly before noon at Île Enchanteresse northeast of Quebec City.
“It’s last-minute. We do not have details for the moment on the number of people who are targeted by the evacuation,” civil security adviser Steve Boivin told La Presse Canadienne.
