By Canadian Press

Snowstorm over southern B.C. halts flights at Vancouver airport

Dec 20, 2022 | 6:30 AM

VANCOUVER — Most of British Columbia is covered by weather warnings as snow, extreme cold and arctic outflow winds grip the province, with those conditions playing havoc with transportation, especially across the south coast.

Heavy snow blanketed much of that region overnight, covering parts of southern Vancouver Island under about 25 centimetres and Metro Vancouver is coping with as much as 15 centimetres.

Environment Canada says an additional five to 10 centimetres is still to come for most areas before conditions are expected to ease later in the day.

The snowfall has forced Vancouver International Airport to temporarily suspend incoming flights and hold many departing planes at their gates; BC Ferries has cancelled numerous sailings between the Mainland and Vancouver Island; and police in Abbotsford, east of Vancouver, report white out conditions along Highway 1 through the Fraser Valley.

The University of B.C. says its Vancouver campus is open, but it has cancelled all in-person exams scheduled for the morning and will release more information later about exams slated for the afternoon.

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Elsewhere around B.C., the ongoing deep freeze produced several daily minimum temperature records Monday, including a low of -46.8 C west of Williams Lane, while the Quesnel area broke a record set 78 years ago when it reached a low of -37.5 C.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 20, 2022.

The Canadian Press