A series of powerful October storms are on their way to the B.C. south coast and will be bringing heavy rains and strong winds on Wednesday night.
Environment Canada said the rainfall will be heavy at times Thursday through Sunday with amounts possibly exceeding 200 millimetres in the west and inland areas of Vancouver Island and 100 millimetres for the inner coastal regions.
“This is the time of year — between now and Christmas — that we start seeing these types of storms move through the province,” Global BC Meteorologist Kristi Gordon said.
“We have a ridge of high pressure for today and tomorrow. Then it will break down and allow a series strong systems to hit the coast.”
Gordon says there will be snow in some parts of the province as well as strong southeasterly winds accompanying these storms with speeds possibly exceeding 80 kilometres an hour.
WATCH: Meteorologist Kristi Gordon has the Wednesday, October 12, 2016, evening weather forecast.
There are three storm systems moving in, Gordon says, with the first one hitting B.C on Wednesday night, and the second and third one hitting Friday and Saturday, respectively.
“The winds are southeast, which typically are the ones that impact ferries and give power outages in places like Langley, Abbotsford and the east part of Vancouver Island,” Gordon said.
Last week thousands were left without power following a southern B.C. storm. The first storm of the season saw more than 15,000 homes and businesses left without power and at the height of the storm, more than 40,000 homes had no power with the bulk being in Metro Vancouver and the Sunshine Coast.
With the full fall weather upon us, Gordon says this is the time of year to get going on some housekeeping items:
- Change the tires on your vehicle in preparation for snowfall.
- Clear the drains of leaves in case of heavy rainfall.
- Be aware we are now in the mode of seeing snow in all the mountain passes in B.C. and prepare your trip accordingly.
- Check your route with DriveBC.
- Make sure to have ample winter gear and supplies in your vehicle if you plan on travelling in your vehicle.
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