The Coquihalla and Okanagan Connector are expected to get another taste of winter this week. Special weather statements have been issued by Environment Canada that call for:
The passage of a cold front creating a sudden change in precipitation from rain to heavy snow over the highways resulting in reduced visibility and possible rapid accumulation of snow. A rapid drop in temperature and snow level will also accompany the cold front.
Meteorologist Armel Castellan says that 4 centimetres of snow could fall near the summits of the upper elevation highways Thursday night, with another 2-4 centimetres arriving Thursday. The weather may not recover enough to melt away by the weekend either. “In the summits where the snow has a good chance of accumulating we’ll probably stay sloppy through the weekend…Sunday is still going to be quite cloudy so we’re not going to get that solar impact that we can get at this time of year. We’ll have to wait for Monday/Tuesday for that.”
Castellan predicts the Okanagan Valley will avoid most of the troubling weather. “Lower elevations, like Kelowna, are going to see 7-8 degrees, kind of dipping overnight so it’s not impossible to see a few flakes but certainly not ones that are going to last for very long.”
Check Environment Canada for the latest forecast and weather warnings, and DriveBC for highway conditions.