Snowfall, Arctic cold warnings in place for B.C.'s Lower Mainland

British Columbia is bracing for extreme weather once again, this time in the form of record low temperatures and snow.

Environment Canada has issued a number of warnings with Arctic winds in the forecast.

Snow came down in parts of the Lower Mainland overnight, blanketing some areas in snow Friday morning.

A snowfall warning was issued for Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley West, including Abbotsford, with up to five centimeters expected.

“Rapidly accumulating snow will make travel difficult,” Environment Canada said in a weather advisory Friday morning.

“Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become difficult to navigate due to accumulating snow.”

An arctic outflow warning was also issued with bitterly cold winds and falling temperatures expected to combine to produce wind chill values below minus-20 C.

Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Howe Sound, the Sea to Sky Highway, Whistler, the mainland inlets of the Sunshine Coast, Comox and Campbell River will all be impacted.

The near-record-cold temperatures will start Saturday night and continue until at least Wednesday.

“Temperatures will remain well below seasonal and will bottom out near record cold temperatures next week,” said Environment Canada.

On Thursday, Public Safety Minister and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth warned British Columbians to be prepared for the coming weather.

“Make sure that you put together an emergency kit in case of power outages (and) follow directions of your local government to find the nearest emergency warming shelter,” Farnworth said.

The provincial government has been highly criticized for not giving the public enough warning about extreme weather events, such as this year’s devastating heat dome and floods.

This time, It has been doubling down on its message, holding back to back news conferences Wednesday and Thursday.

Historically, Metro Vancouver has a nine per cent chance of a white Christmas, but this year arctic air will meet a northwest flow, making for a very snowy day Saturday.

“Places like Abbotsford out to Hope (may see) drifting snow,” said Doug Lundquist of Environment Canada. “It’s not entirely possible there won’t be blowing snow some places. It might look like a blizzard.”

With the temperatures expected to plunge, officials are warning people to be cautious.

“Frostbite and hypothermia can occur within minutes if adequate precautions are not taken when outdoors. Any outdoor activity exposes you to an increased risk of frostbite,” said Environment Canada.

British Columbians are reminded to minimize exposed skin with hats, scarves and mittens or gloves.

Cities all over the Lower Mainland are opening warming centres and organizations are handing out survival kits.

The City of Vancouver has already brought in extra staff to clear the roads and, as usual, the major routes will be done first.

“In terms of response time, it’s hard to predict because it’s really dependent on, kind of, how much snow comes and when,” said Amy Sidwell, a spokesperson for the City of Vancouver’s street operations.

DriveBC is reminding people that speed limits are for ideal conditions and that’s not what we’ll be seeing for the next few days.

With files from CTV News Vancouver’s St John Alexander