Lower Mainland residents are in for a dump of snow Tuesday night.
Environment Canada has issued snowfall warnings across the region, with the winter weather expected to kick in Tuesday afternoon.
The worst of it will hit the Coquihalla Highway, between Hope and Merritt, where 20 to 35 cm are forecast to fall. A significant amount is also expected in other higher terrain areas and in Chilliwack and Hope. There, Environment Canada says 20 to 25 cm of snow will land before Wednesday evening.
In North Vancouver, Coquitlam and Maple Ridge, residents can expect to see between 10 and 20 cm. Slightly less – 10 to 15 cm – is forecast for Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Surrey, Langley and Abbotsford. Residents in Richmond and Delta are expected to see the least at five to 10 cm.
Heavy snow should turn to light flurries or rain by Wednesday morning in Metro Vancouver and Abbotsford, but it’s expected to continue until Wednesday evening for areas of the Fraser Valley further east.
Beyond the poor road conditions the weather is guaranteed to bring, Environment Canada says strong winds forecast for Wednesday could also down freshly snow-laden tree branches. Southwest wind gusts are expected to get as strong as 40 to 70 km/h.
“Prepare for quickly changing and deteriorating travel conditions. Visibility will be suddenly reduced to near zero at times in heavy snow and blowing snow,” the weather agency warns.
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