Warm weather records on B.C.'s South Coast, while southern Interior hit with more snow
Credit to Author: Tiffany Crawford| Date: Sat, 04 Jan 2020 19:13:13 +0000
While some parts of the province are dealing with a snowstorm and more power outages, warm weather records were smashed on B.C.’s South Coast and in the Okanagan.
Lillooet was the warmest spot in Canada Friday, and at at 16.5 C it broke the old record of 11.1 C set in 2001.
Abbotsford was another hot spot, and hit 15.7 C, breaking the old record of 13.8 C in 2003, while Pitt Meadows hit 15.3 C, and Cache Creek was a record 13.8 C.
White Rock was 14.4 C beating the old record of 13.3 C in 2003, and Vancouver set a record 12 C, from 11. 7 C in 1934.
Also setting warm-weather records Friday were Lytton, Merritt, Osoyoos, Penticton, and Summerland.
As the satellite shows the Pacific storm brought lots of warm air all the way from the subtropics to BC#Lillooet is the #Canada hotspot with 16.5C
Several temperature records were broken including #Abbotsford #Ashcroft #Comox #WhiteRock
Full details:https://t.co/PclUauY9Gr pic.twitter.com/93ZJAEdVRX
Meantime, other areas of the province were dealing with heavy snow and power outages. In the Thompson-Shuswap region, where more than 12,400 BC Hydro customers were without power Saturday morning, officials warned residents in the hardest hit regions to prepare for being without power throughout the weekend.
Tanya Fish, a spokesperson for BC Hydro, said there was more snow overnight Friday and a tree fell on the company’s Sorrento substation. As of 11 a.m., power had been partially restored to those customers and Fish said the rest should have their power back on by the end of the day.
Here's a look at the conditions crews are facing on the North Shore of #ShuswapLake. We have quite a few power line crews and vegetation crews working in the area and more crews and resources are being brought into assist with restoration efforts. #BCStorm pic.twitter.com/9vuJHlnj30
In an alert posted Saturday morning, BC Hydro said while crew made progress overnight, more crews were being brought into the North Shuswap Lake area. Fish said because of the deep snow in this remote area, crews are having to snowplow before they can repair power lines. These customers may be without power through the weekend.
Elsewhere, Environment and Climate Change Canada has posted a snowfall warning for the Coquihalla Highway, in the Fraser Valley, Fraser Canyon and Nicola regions.
The federal weather agency says up to 15 centimetres of snow is expected Saturday on the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt, with further accumulations of five to 10 centimetres on Sunday.
The agency warns that visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow. Weather in the mountains can change suddenly resulting in hazardous driving conditions.
On Tuesday, a snowstorm cut power to tens of thousands of residents in the southern Interior.
The hardest hit areas included Clearwater, Quesnel and rural areas just outside of Kamloops, Vernon and Salmon Arm where heavy snow caused branches and trees to crash into power lines.
ticrawford@postmedia.com
-With files from Scott Brown