B.C. weather: Freezing rain, snowfall warning issued for Interior

A large swath of B.C.’s Interior is under a weather alert for either freezing rain or snow on Thursday.

Issued at noon on Tuesday by Environment Canada and updated on Wednesday morning, the alert stretches from north of Prince George, through the Cariboo, and into the Okanagan to the U.S. border. It also includes pockets in the Kootenays.

The national weather agency says a low-pressure system will move onto B.C.’s coast on Wednesday night and Thursday, bringing 5-10 cm of expected widespread snowfall to the Cariboo and Chilcotin regions in the Central Interior, along with a risk of freezing rain.

For the Southern Interior — including the Shuswap, Okanagan, Similkameen and Boundary regions — it said “warm air will accompany the system, and freezing rain is expected to develop over the southwest Interior of B.C., particularly over higher elevations and highway passes.”

Highway passes under the weather alert include the Coquihalla Highway (north of the summit to Kamloops), the Okanagan Connector (Highway 97C), Highway 3 (Hope to Princeton via the Allison Pass), Highway 3A and Highway 33.

Areas under the freezing rain warning for Thursday afternoon include the North Okanagan, Shuswap and North Thompson.

It added that freezing rain could lead to possible power outages, though the weather pattern is expected to change to just rain on Thursday morning as the cold air disappears.