As the fog sweeps in over the interior of B.C., flights are being cancelled and motorists are being warned of limited visibility on highways.
Kelowna International Airport cancelled more than six arrival flights Thursday morning due to low visibility.
Both arrival and departing flights appear to be either delayed or cancelled until about noon.
DriveBC has issued warnings for Highway 1 in Kamloops, the Shuswap and Revelstoke, as well as Highway 97, Highway 6 and Highway 5 — due to limited visibility on the road.
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Cindy Yu with Environment Canada says the ridge of high pressure mixed with moisture is causing fog to linger in the Central Interior.
“This is really nothing out of the ordinary, weather-wise,” she said. “This upper-level trough that is over the region provided some showers and with the snow still on the ground trying to evaporate, it is creating low-level moisture and that is basically cloud reaching all the way to the ground.”
Yu believes it could take several hours for the fog to erode and the cloud cover to lift from the region.
The increased cloudiness is expected to continue into the weekend due to the upper-level low in the area being cut off from the jet stream in the Pacific.
“There is nothing to push the system out of the way and with this instability we will have a chance of showers here and there,” Yu said. “Really there isn’t a whole lot going on.”
She says Environment Canada isn’t forecasting another strong system to move into the area despite a new weather pattern forming over the Pacific.
“For the next five to seven days there isn’t a whole lot (to forecast), this upper trough that is over the region brings instability that is embedded in this cold air and eventually will just dissipate on its own in the form of rain.”
While many municipalities in the Okanagan and Shuswap fear rising water levels because of increased snowpack, Yu says Environment Canada does not anticipate any significant precipitation.
RELATED: Increased snowpack, lots of rain boost B.C. flooding risk
“Weather-wise there is nothing to talk about, there is nothing significant about to happen.”
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