When will the snow stop in Metro Vancouver? And when is the next storm?
Metro Vancouver got served a potentially record-setting dump of snow overnight and continued to see rapid snowfall Wednesday morning.
The weather has certainly turned the region into a winter wonderland, but when will the snow stop? When will travel go back to normal?
Environment and Climate Change Canada meteorologist Alyssa Charbonneau tells Daily Hive that the heaviest snowfall is happening in the morning, and it should taper off by Wednesday afternoon or evening.
Temperatures are expected to stay cold enough in Metro Vancouver that all of Wednesday’s precipitation should fall as snow.
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Between 10 and 15 centimetres of snow fell on the region overnight, and Charbonneau says the latest predictions peg the total snowfall amount by Wednesday evening at 20 centimetres. That’s slightly higher in the Fraser Valley at 25 centimetres.
“We’ll see how all that plays out, but definitely another 10 centimetres on top of what we’ve seen so far,” she said. “It’ll start to taper off this afternoon and then clear out tonight for a pretty cold night.
The snowfall could set records for the snowiest January 17 ever recorded. Abbotsford’s record is fairly low — 7.4 centimetres back in 1970. Vancouver itself has a record of 13.5 centimetres back in 1962. That looks like it could fall, since some residents are already reporting more than 14 centimetres of snow.
Moving onto Wednesday night, skies should be clear but it’ll be cold — with the temperature going down to -4°C.
Then, on Thursday, Metro Vancouver is due for another storm. We should have a break in the morning before more precipitation comes on Thursday afternoon.
The temperature is predicted to be close to zero, so it may fall as rain or snow in various parts of the region. Cold outflow winds from the Fraser Valley could spice things up and create freezing rain in places like Langley and Abbotsford.
Friday is expected to be warm and rainy for the most part, though there is still a risk of freezing rain in some areas.
Temperatures on the weekend are predicted to warm up to well above freezing, although the rain is sticking around. So there you have it, typical Vancouver weather is supposed to return by Saturday.