..and the I's Have It........ Irene ,Eye of the Huricane..all in all Montreal is getting a Bath

         Well no where near as bad as the pre-hype storm(although sadly for some families, 11 deaths were attributed to the storm),there is a lot of soggy places along the eastern seaboard,.some damage (as expected,but less than predicted---that's always good when that happens. It seems Montreal will get some rainy weather,....

MONTREAL - Montreal got a rare taste of the effects of a tropical storm Sunday as the forefront of Hurricane Irene blew into southern Quebec in the early afternoon, bringing high winds, heavy rains and power outages.

As much as 60 to 100 millimetres of rain was forecast to fall within a few hours, and gusts up to 100 kilometres an hour were expected. By 1:30 p.m., 19,000 homes were without power on the island of Montreal, Hydro-Québec reported.

The hurricane, which was downgraded to a tropical storm as it swept over the northern New England states, was so vast it brought heavy rains to Montreal by noon while the main force of the storm was still several hundred kilometres south and several hours away.

Environment Canada issued a wind warning for Montreal and the surrounding area on Saturday, saying residents should brace for northeasterly gusts up to 100 kilometres per hour on Sunday and into Monday in a corridor from Montreal toward the lower St. Lawrence. A rainfall warning was added on Sunday morning.

By the time the brunt of Irene hits Montreal on Sunday afternoon and evening, it will likely be downgraded again, but will still bear the effects of a tropical storm, Environment Canada meteorologist René Héroux said.

“By the time it reaches Quebec it will just be a massive low pressure system, like a massive storm,” Héroux said. “But the characteristics of the tropical storm will still be there - the moisture, the humidity and so on. It’s no longer a hurricane or tropical storm, but the effects will be there.”

Normally it’s eastern Quebec, the north shore region and the Gaspé that feel the effects of hurricanes and tropical storms sweeping up the east coast, but Irene is a rare extreme weather system that is blowing up the St. Lawrence Valley corridor and passing over Montreal, the Mauricie, Quebec City, Saguenay, Charlevoix and the lower St. Lawrence, Héroux said. The effects of the storm were expected to be less strong in the east, although as much as 50-80 millimetres of rain were forecast in those sectors.

Quebec’s public security ministry counselled residents to keep a close watch on weather reports and secure items in their yards like patio chairs and umbrellas that could become dangerous airborne projectiles in the gusting winds.

Public Security Minister Robert Dutil said emergency crews are already are on alert with plans of action in case of need.

He urged Quebecers to have on hand sufficient supplies for 72 hours, including water, non-perishable food, a manual can opener, battery-powered radio and flashlight.

At Pierre Elliott Trudeau International airport, many flights arriving from or leaving for the northeastern U.S. were cancelled Sunday morning. Passengers were being urged to check their flight status before heading out the airport.

Public security officials were keeping a close eye on smaller rivers Sunday that could overflow their banks due to the heavy rainfalls, said spokersperson Annik Bouchard. On Monday focus would switch the larger rivers fed by smaller waterways swollen by rain and the runoff from mountainous regions already saturated from record rainfalls earlier in the season.

Eleven deaths in the U.S. were attributed to the effects of Hurricane Irene as of Sunday afternoon. Hydro-Québec was sending 120 technicians to New Hampshire on Sunday to help with electricity problems forecast for the state

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