'Wintry mix' of weather expected in Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley: Environment Canada

Lower Mainland residents are being told to expect a "wintry mix of precipitation," which could include snow over the next couple of days.

Environment Canada issued a special weather statement early Monday morning for Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Howe Sound, Whistler and the Sea to Sky Highway. Rain mixed with snow is possible Tuesday evening through Wednesday, the advisory says, and could impact the Tuesday evening commute in particular.

The weather statement says snowfall levels "are expected to vary greatly with elevation and proximity to the water."

"With a warming southwesterly flow aloft, snow levels will rise overnight resulting in mixed precipitation changing to moderate to heavy rain late Tuesday night or early Wednesday," Environment Canada's advisory says.

"During this transition, there is also a risk of freezing rain over the Fraser Valley as warm air overrides the cold air in the valley."

The heavier precipitation is expected to begin easing late Wednesday.

Monday's weather advisory comes after some mountain highway passes connecting the Lower Mainland to B.C.'s Interior saw heavy snow over the weekend. Environment Canada called Sunday's weather system "vigorous," adding it brought "gusty winds" to some regions.

Environment Canada's preliminary snowfall data for Sunday shows 30 centimetres of snow accumulated on Coquihalla Summit and 26 accumulated on Highway 3's Allison Pass, between Hope and Princeton.

Kootenay Pass saw 16 centimetres, Pine Pass saw 13-16, Rogers Pass got 10-15 and nine centimetres accumulated on Yellowhead Highway.

Weather records broken

In spite of the burst of wintry weather, three B.C. communities saw high temperature records fall Sunday.

Preliminary data from Environment Canada shows Penticton, Summerland and Vernon areas broke their 1986 records. In Penticton, it got up to 16.3 C, breaking the previous record of 14.7 C.

In Summerland it was a little cooler, but still broke a record when it got up to 15.1 C. The previous 1986 record was 14.5 C.

Meanwhile, Vernon's new record for Feb. 25 is 13.6 C when previously it hadn't gotten warmer than 12.5 C on that day.