Fête nationale marked by parades, concerts and extreme weather in Quebec

Thunderstorms and heavy rain dampened Fête nationale festivities in Quebec's provincial capital region on Monday.

About 15 minutes before a concert was set to begin on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec City, organizers cancelled the event and evacuated the area due to extreme weather that brought thunder, lightning and heavy downpours.

The violent thunderstorm that swept through the Capitale-Nationale and the Chaudière-Appalaches region just south has left more than 44,000 customers without power in the Quebec City area as of Tuesday afternoon. 

The province is also facing other extreme weather as it celebrates its national holiday.

Quebec City announced this week it is opening air-conditioned community centres and libraries and extending hours at splash pads due to an Environment and Climate Change Canada heat warning covering much of the province.

Temperatures are expected to reach 30 C and above, with humidex values between 40 and 45 on Tuesday. 

Montreal will be hosting a parade beginning at 2 p.m., followed by an evening concert at Parc Maisonneuve featuring artists such as Robert Charlebois and Sara Dufour.

This year's celebrations will commemorate the 50-year anniversary of the first performance of Gilles Vigneault's song Gens du pays, which is often considered the province's unofficial anthem.

Quebec says nearly 650 events are happening across the province to mark the holiday also known as St-Jean-Baptiste Day.

During heat waves, the City of Montreal often extends the opening hours of many public places where people can get a reprieve from the heat, including pools, splash pads and misting fountains.

A City of Montreal map showing places where you can cool off: