.jpg;w=120;h=120;mode=crop){kind=avatar}
The North Shore was blanketed with up to 40 centimetres of snow overnight over the weekend, setting records for the most snow on the ground Feb. 26.
And Environment Canada warns we may not be done with winter yet.
Environment Canada’s official weather station on Cypress Bowl Road in West Vancouver recorded 30 cm of snow between Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning.
But unofficial reports from the public in areas like Lynn Valley put the snowfall even higher, at about 40 cm, said Derek Lee, Environment Canada meteorologist.
The North Shore recorded 28 cm of snow on the ground Sunday – a record for that date.
Snowfall amounts varied considerably throughout the south coast, with Squamish recording a high of 50 cm of snow for the weekend storm. Vancouver International Airport, on the other hand, received only 11 cm of snow.
Lee warned the Lower Mainland could get more snow this week, beginning this afternoon and into Tuesday morning.
Flurries could bring between two and six cm of snow overnight for most areas at sea level, said Lee, ending around noon Tuesday.
But by Wednesday, “It’s looking like we’ll get another system coming in,” said Lee – bringing the possibility of more snow.
Chances of getting snow on the south coast into March aren’t that unusual, said Lee, particularly with current below-average temperatures.
It isn’t until next weekend that those temperatures warm up, bringing rain, said Lee.
The snowstorm on the weekend resulted in power outages to a number of areas, beginning Saturday when about 4,750 customers were without electricity on Bowen Island, areas north of Horseshoe Bay and pockets of West Vancouver north of Highway 1.
Power was out for about 7,000 customers on Sunday, starting between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. Electricity was restored for most customers by 6 p.m.
Local municipalities reported clearing Priority 1 routes by the end of the weekend, working on secondary routes on Monday. In the District of North Vancouver, 11 plows and salt trucks were out over the weekend.
About 40 centimetres of new snow also fell on North Shore ski hills over the weekend.
“We had wonderful conditions on Sunday, the best of the season so far,” said Simon Whitehead, spokesman for Mt. Seymour Resort. “Knee-deep powder and wall-to-wall sunshine.”
