VANCOUVER — A fresh blast of snow has shut many schools in Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island as frigid weather brings temperatures as low as -39 Celsius to other parts of British Columbia.
Among those hit by the closures are schools in North Vancouver, West Vancouver and Greater Victoria.
Numerous on-campus classes are also cancelled at institutions including the University of B.C. in Vancouver, Simon Fraser University, and the University of Victoria.
Environment Canada says in a preliminary summary there were "heavy flurries" in parts of the South Coast, with parts of Metro Vancouver receiving up to another 10 centimetres of snow overnight, while Nanaimo received 23 centimetres.
Temperatures were below -30 Celsius in much of the Interior and the north, where extreme cold and arctic outflow warnings are in place, with temperatures dipping to -39 in Dawson Creek Tuesday morning.
Environment Canada has also issued snowfall warnings for the Sunshine Coast, the Southern Gulf Islands and East Vancouver Island, as an arctic air mass moves over the North and Central coasts.
BC Highway Patrol is meanwhile asking commuters to reconsider driving, with multiple collisions on Highway 1 near the Port Mann Bridge "causing major delays" on the major Metro Vancouver link
Regional public transportation operator TransLink is suggesting people build extra time into their commute due to road conditions.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 4, 2025.
The Canadian Press
