B.C. residents — even those living in its typically wet southwest corner — should be prepared for white Christmas this year.
The south coast forecast looks favourable with an 80 or 90 per cent chance of snowfall for Dec. 25 – even in typically green Victoria, according to Doug Lundquist, a meteorologist for Environment Canada.
Meanwhile, Lundquist says Hope and communities to the north and east – areas typically more prone to snow over the holiday – have a 100 per cent chance of a white Christmas.
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“It’s a good year for St. Nick for sure, at least in Canada,” Lundquist said. “It’s going to be cold enough … I’m highly confident you’re going to see white on Christmas Day.”
He also predicts the entire nation could have a white Christmas, with only a small portion in the extreme south of Ontario possibly escaping.
Five days is a stretch to anticipate how much snow will fall, those numbers will come later in the week. But there are parts of Vancouver Island likely to see snow as early as Tuesday (Dec. 21).
By Saturday it’ll be white, even in downtown Victoria, Lundquist said.
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As of Monday, Dec. 20, the forecast for Christmas Eve through Boxing Day in Greater Victoria includes snow. Christmas Eve, with a high of 4 C and an overnight low of -1 C, is set to be cloudy with a mix of rain and flurries and turning to snow overnight. Christmas Day warms up slightly to 2 C but has an overnight low of -3 C with a mix of rain and snow, returning to straight snow Boxing Day when the daytime temperature is expected to stick to 0 C.
There could be flurries on Christmas Eve, Lundquist noted, but he expects regular snowfall will wait until residents can “hunker down” for the holiday.
READ ALSO: Ferries running, hundreds still without power after snow hits Greater Victoria
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