Windstorm hits West Vancouver with gusts up to 78 km/h

A sudden wind and rainstorm that hit the south coast Tuesday night had folks in West Vancouver battening down the hatches.

Described as a vigorous system that slid down the coast and hit for a brief but intense two hours, the late May storm had wind gusts of up to 78 kilometres per hour hitting Point Atkinson and 52 millimetres of rain falling in West Vancouver.

“The big hotspot was West Vancouver,” said Environment Canada meteorologist Ken Dosanjh.

Earlier, BC Hydro crews restored power to about 14 homes in the 2900 block of Altamont Crescent in West Vancouver and to homes in the 2700 block of North Vancouver’s Hoskins Road that both lost power when trees came down across wires during the storm.

About 1,000 customers on Bowen Island and about 1,100 on the Sunshine Coast were still without power Wednesday morning.

Tuesday night’s deluge put the total rainfall for May so far in West Vancouver at 85.5 mm.

The forecast for the rest of the week is “unsettled” said Dosanjh, including a typical spring mix of sun, clouds and showers, with temperatures slightly below normal. Highs will fluctuate between 13 and 18 C, with overnight lows hovering between 9 and 10 C.

So far Friday looks like the wettest and coolest day of the week.

For further details on local weather, visit the North Shore News' Weatherhood page.