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Thunderstorms in Montreal area cause flooding, state of emergency declared in Napierville

In this file photo, ominous storm clouds gather over Montreal as a severe storm front hits regions of Quebec. A storm system over Montreal Friday led to flooding in the south shore community of Napierville, prompting the municipality to declare a state of emergency. Saturday, Aug. 5, 2017. Mario Beauregard

Violent storms and hail on Friday afternoon in and around the Montreal area caused heavy damage, from uprooted trees, to backed up sewers and flooded streets and homes.

Thousands were left without power, but the hardest hit communities were south shore Saint-Constant and Napierville, which are around 45 kilometres south of Montreal.

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A state of emergency was put in place in Napierville Friday night and a shelter was made available, should evacuations become necessary.

Several streets and 150 homes were flooded after the sewer system, unable to absorb the heavy downpour, backed up.

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Firefighters and city crews spent the overnight hours pumping water to alleviate the flooding.

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By Saturday morning, the situation had improved dramatically and the state of emergency was expected to be lifted later in the day.

The storm also impacted nearby Saint-Isidore, where a sweet pepper producer lost his entire crop due to hail.

Air travel in and out of Montreal’s Pierre-Elliot-Trudeau airport was also hampered, with numerous flights delayed.

Several concerts at the Osheaga music festival were also temporarily suspended due to the inclement weather.

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