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January 1998 North American ice storm


Ice Storm of 1998
Ice Storm 98 trees line Noaa6198.jpg
An example of the damage to trees
TypeExtratropical cyclone
Ice storm
Winter storm
FormedJanuary 4, 1998
DissipatedJanuary 10, 1998
Lowest pressureUnknown
Maximum snowfall or ice accretionaround 5 inches (130 mm) (freezing rain)
Damage$5–7 billion (2005 US$)
Power outages4 million at peak
CasualtiesCanada: 28[1]
United States: 16 (plus 12 in floods in Southern States with same system)[2]



Freezing rain is common in Canada and New England, generally occurring at the narrow boundary between cold air from the east and north and moist air from the south. Typically, a warm air mass will travel northward along the Mississippi Valley and overrun a shallow layer of cold air trapped at the surface.[4]:30 Such a favorable cold air damming happens with an east to northeasterly flow in the St. Lawrence (the predominant wind direction in the St. Lawrence Valley is usually either northeast or southwest) and the Ottawa Valley and along the axis of the Appalachian Mountains.

Snow is produced at upper levels in such a winter storm system, but it eventually melts into rain as it falls through a warm air layer of above freezing temperature (of at least 1,200 feet (370 m) in depth) associated with the overrunning. The rain passes through colder air near the surface and is supercooled. When that rain touches the ground or any other cold surface in the cold air below, the droplets freeze on contact, creating accumulations of ice. If the cold air layer is too thick, the droplets refreeze before hitting the ground and form ice pellets, which are usually less hazardous.[4]:22

The Montreal area typically receives freezing rain between 12 and 17 times a year, averaging between 45 and 65 total hours of rain.[5] However, a freezing rain storm usually lasts only a few hours and leaves a few millimeters of accumulation. It renders roads and sidewalks slippery, causing minor traffic collisions, but road crews use de-icing material to take care of it. Power lines and other equipment are built according to tough standards, since large accumulation events have happened many times prior to 1998.[5] In Quebec, standards were reinforced after a storm left 30 millimetres (1.2 in) to 40 millimetres (1.6 in) of ice in Montreal in 1961.[6]

Prior to the 1998 storm, the last major ice storm to hit Montreal (1961) deposited around 30 millimetres (1.2 in) to 60 millimetres (2.4 in) of ice. However, the 1998 storm left deposits twice as thick, downing power lines all over the region, damaging most of the trees in Montreal, and leaving streets covered in a thick, impassable layer of ice.[6]

Meteorological synopsisEdit






Two inches of ice on a twig, illustrating the impact.


The bridges and tunnels linking Montreal with the South Shore were closed because of concerns about weight tolerances or ice chunks falling from the superstructures. All but one power linkage to the island of Montreal were down for several days,[9] disabling both of the city's water pumping stations.[10] When power was restored, parts of Montreal remained impassable due to large chunks of ice falling from rooftops, which endangered pedestrians and motorists; large portions of Old Montreal and the downtown core were cordoned off by police due to the dangers of large sheets of ice falling from buildings.

The area south of Montreal (Montérégie) was so affected that the triangle formed by Saint-Hyacinthe, Granby and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu was nicknamed the triangle noir ("dark or black triangle") by the French-language media,[11] and the Triangle of Darkness in English media,[9] for the total lack of electricity for weeks.



Millions of trees were brought down by the weight of ice around the affected areas.[14] As many trees were damaged or fell by the heavy ice, the maple syrup and orchard regions suffered heavy blows and massive losses in the storm; Quebec's maple sugar industry, the largest in the world, was devastated.[14] As another example, 5,000 trees in Montreal's Mount Royal Park had to be cut, 80% (140,000) of the rest were damaged to different degrees and had to be trimmed, a large number severely.[14] The mountain park looked more like a logging camp than a nature oasis for many weeks.

Critically, about 1,000 steel electrical pylons[15] and 35,000 wooden utility poles were crushed and crumpled by the weight of the ice, further damaging the power supply and hampering the return of electricity. Teams were brought in from places such as Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, along with teams from the United States and the Canadian Forces, to help restore power to affected homes in eastern Ontario and western Quebec.


Three weeks after the end of the ice storm, there were still thousands of people without electricity. In Quebec alone, 150,000 people were without electricity as of January 28.[17] Estimates of material damage reached around $2 billion Canadian for Quebec alone. Overall estimates are around $4–6 billion US$ for all the areas affected.[18] Damage to the power grid was so severe that major rebuilding, not repairing, of the electrical grid had to be undertaken.[19]

Operation RecuperationEdit





Long-term effectsEdit

Project Ice Storm (Projet Verglas) was created to monitor the long-term effect of prenatal stress. Researchers at McGill University set up the project in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, finding 178 families to participate; some of the women were still pregnant at the start of the investigation. "The goal of the current study is to understand the long-term effects of the prenatal exposure to stress on the physical growth and functioning, cognitive development, and behaviour of the Project Ice Storm children by studying developmental trajectories through age 13.[20]

See alsoEdit


  1. ^ Lecomte, Eugene L.; Pang, Alan W.; Russell, James W. (1998). La tempête de verglas de 1998 (pdf) (in French). IPSC. p. 37. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
  2. ^ National Climatic Data Center (April 12, 1999). "Eastern U.S. Flooding and Ice Storm". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on September 22, 2014. Retrieved June 11, 2009..
  3. ^ a b c "Operation RECUPERATION". Past Operations. Canada Department of National Defense. 2005. Archived from the original on May 29, 2006. Retrieved May 20, 2006.
  4. ^ a b c d Abley, Mark (1998). The ice storm: an historic record in photographs of January 1998. Toronto: M&S. ISBN 978-0-7710-6100-4.
  5. ^ a b David Phillips (December 18, 2002). "A closer look at a rare situation". 1998 Ice Storm. Meteorological Service of Canada. Archived from the original on February 9, 2006. Retrieved February 29, 2016.CS1 maint: Unfit url (link).
  6. ^ a b David Phillips (December 18, 2002). "The worst Ice Storm In Canadian History?". Environment Canada. Archived from the original on July 19, 2006. Retrieved March 3, 2008.
  9. ^ a b CBC News, Icestorm 10th anniversary, January 2008
  12. ^ "ALCo/MLW locos". CN Lines Special Interest Group. Archived from the original on December 19, 2007. Retrieved May 20, 2006.
  14. ^ a b c McCready, Jim (2004). "Ice Storm 1998: Lessons learned" (PDF). Eastern Ontario Model Forest. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 18, 2006. Retrieved September 10, 2006.
  15. ^ Claude Turcotte (January 5, 2008). "L'après-crise aura coûté deux milliards". Le Devoir (in French). Retrieved November 6, 2013.
  19. ^ The Weather Network News: Taken by storm Archived June 12, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  20. ^ "Project Ice Storm: Continuing Effects of Prenatal Stress on Children's Physical, Cognitive and Behavioural Development in Adolescence". Project Ice Storm. McGill University. Retrieved May 6, 2016.

External linksEdit