A woman carries a dog during during a period of cold weather in Vancouver, which is expected to get either snow or freezing rain starting Tuesday night. (Ben Nelms/CBC)
Up to 20 cm of snow expected for central areas including Prince George
British Columbia remains in the grip of winter weather as extreme cold persists in the province’s southeast and northeast regions, while snowfall warnings say parts of the Interior including Prince George could see up to 20 centimetres of more snow.
Environment Canada says a “robust” low-pressure system moving across the province will bring periods of heavy snow from the North Coast through the Cariboo to the Alberta border starting Monday night before easing by Tuesday afternoon or evening.
Special weather statements have also been issued for the Southern Interior and southwest B.C. warning of more snow beginning Tuesday night.
Environment Canada said a low-pressure system approaching the coast from the west would bring moisture expected to fall as snow over those areas, but there could also be freezing rain in the southwest as temperatures hover around zero.
“The potential for heavy snow and freezing rain during this time could pose a hazard to travel and outdoor activities,” the forecaster said on its website.
Extreme cold continues
Meanwhile, regions including the East Kootenay and Elk Valley in the province’s southeast continue to have extremely cold weather, with wind chill values value making it feel like –35 C.
The coldest spot in B.C. on Monday morning was at Yoho National Park, which had an air temperature of –37 C.
The highest temperature in B.C. recorded Monday morning was at a weather station on remote Sartine Island off the northwestern tip of Vancouver Island, where it was 4 C.
The bitter cold is also continuing in the northeast, where a provincial low of –45.5 C was recorded Sunday at Fort Nelson Airport.
Weather records
Environment Canada says several records were broken over the weekend, including Sunday in Creston, which hit –22.7 C, beating its previous record of –21.7 C in 1950.
Osoyoos also broke a record at –18.8 C, beating its previous record of –18.3 C set in 2017.
West Vancouver and the Sechelt area were slightly below previous records, while Squamish dipped to –12.3 C, which was 2.5 C colder than the previous record in 2007.
The sustained cold temperatures have caused burst pipes at some homes and businesses. A seniors facility in Williams Lake had to be evacuated on Friday with people in 20 units being forced from their homes due to damaged pipes.
