Multiple ferry sailings cancelled as B.C.'s South Coast braces for wicked weather

A BC Ferries vessel passes Bowen Island while traveling on Howe Sound from Horseshoe Bay to Langdale, B.C., on Friday, April 23, 2021. (Darryl Dyck/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

BC Ferries has cancelled multiple sailings scheduled for Friday night, when heavy rain and strong winds are expected to hit the South Coast.

“Due to forecasted high winds for Vancouver Island and the Strait of Georgia, service on several of our routes will be affected today,” reads a service notice posted Friday afternoon.

The ferry operator says there will be no trips departing Metro Vancouver’s terminals, Tsawwassen and Horseshoe Bay, past 7 p.m.

That includes sailings destined for Victoria, Nanaimo and the Southern Gulf Islands, according to the notice.

“The safety of our passengers and crew is of primary importance to us,” wrote BC Ferries. “We know customers rely on our service to get them where they need to go, however, temporarily suspending service is necessary under these conditions.”

The cancellations are in response to multiple warnings Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued across Metro Vancouver, Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast.

Strong winds are expected to bring gusts of up to 90 kilometres per hour to those regions before easing Saturday morning.

Up to 70 millimetres of rain could fall on parts of the Fraser Valley and Northshore starting Friday night, according to forecasters.

The heavy rains combined with wind could cause power outages and flash floods, ECCC warns.

BC Ferries says it will continue to monitor the weather system, and that customers with bookings on cancelled sailings will be contacted and offered refunds or alternative travel options.