Snow in the forecast for the Lower Mainland this weekend
Posted January 22, 2021 7:25 am.
Last Updated January 22, 2021 8:05 am.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It’s been a fairly mild winter around the Lower Mainland so far, but that may be about to change.
An Environment Canada Special Weather Statement has been issued for much of the region, warning of potential snow accumulations.
NEWS 1130 Meteorologist Michael Kuss says this weekend will bring our first real taste of winter weather, with snow expected to start falling in some areas early Sunday.
“Early November we had a blast of snow and it didn’t even hit all communities but it stuck around for a couple of days, especially at higher elevations,” he says.
“This looks like some widespread snow across the area, hitting all communities even close to the water. We’re not talking about heavy amounts here but it looks like two to five centimetres. The track is still crucial.”
Ready for snow this weekend? A Special Weather Statement is in effect over the South Coast for snow starting Saturday night to Sunday(Jan. 23-24, 2021)! 2-5cm may fall for most of the mainland & 5-15cm for eastern/inland Vancouver Island.
Details: https://t.co/YmTFiXNAcG#BCStorm pic.twitter.com/LwVkKiLhLU— ECCC Weather British Columbia (@ECCCWeatherBC) January 21, 2021
Michael admits forecasting snow is “never easy” on the Lower Mainland. He does note that there are a few things at play when talking about this upcoming system.
“Arctic air is in place, we need that. That’s factor number one. We have moisture coming in from the Pacific, factor two in place. But the positioning of that low tracking down the coast — if it’s a little bit farther to the west of Vancouver Island, lighter amounts of snow, colder air. If it’s a little bit farther inland, say through the eastern parts of the Fraser Valley, we get into more rain and less snow,” he explains.
Right now, it looks like that low is going to track right over Vancouver Island.
“And that gives us the perfect mix of cold air and moisture, meaning snow across the Lower Mainland. Looks like heavier closer to the coast than farther through the eastern parts of the Valley.”
The colder temperatures are expected to stick around for a while, with Michael saying it’ll linger through most of next week.
Cold air pushing across BC & toward the coast. Arctic air will remain in place for Western Canada for at least a week. @NEWS1130 pic.twitter.com/x9uAse4ZSC
— Michael Kuss (@Kusswx) January 22, 2021
That means we could see other bursts of light snow in the coming days, starting Sunday and continuing on and off until possibly Thursday.
“We’re not talking about 20, 30 centimetres of snow here. But we are talking about widespread snow. In the two to five centimetres range,” he explains. “If things shake out absolutely perfectly, I wouldn’t be surprised by 10 centimetres of snow in some areas.”
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