Skip to main content
Open this photo in gallery:

A man wearing a Canadian flag stands in the middle of a snow-covered road while he waits for the bus in North Vancouver, B.C., on Jan. 15, 2020.JONATHAN HAYWARD/The Canadian Press

A powerful snow storm that swept across southern British Columbia early Wednesday prompted a provincial government advisory warning motorists to stay off many roads.

The advisory covered four Vancouver Island highways including Highway 1 between Nanaimo and Victoria. It was issued shortly after a section of Highway 1 just east of Vancouver was also closed because of blowing snow and treacherous conditions.

“Because of extreme winter weather, motorists are advised to avoid all but essential travel throughout the Metro Vancouver region today, including the Fraser Valley,” said the advisory from the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.

A section of Highway 99, the Sea to Sky Highway north of Vancouver, was also shut down for several hours due to a vehicle incident in icy and blustery conditions not long after Environment Canada posted a rare blizzard warning for the Howe Sound region, which includes that route.

Every public school and postsecondary institution from the eastern Fraser Valley to Victoria and Nanaimo was shuttered as the storm dumped at least 25 centimetres of snow in many areas, with the weather office calling for more snow.

Hardy Lower Mainland commuters who decided to rely on public transit faced lengthy waits and those who reached SkyTrain stations were advised by attendants to return home.

A statement from TransLink, which handles transit services across Metro Vancouver, confirmed the snow was playing havoc with the service.

“Switch issues on the system are causing some trains to be unable to reliably make it to stations, and crowds are building,” the statement said.

The problems forced closure of three entire stations in Surrey and New Westminster, while ice buildup in the guides of the automated doors on trains that were running caused further delays.

Extreme cold, winter storm or snowfall warnings were in effect for all but a handful of regions from British Columbia, Yukon and the Northwest Territories all the way to northern Manitoba.

Bitterly cold Arctic air that skidded southward across Western Canada carried wind chill values that Environment Canada said were at or below –50 C in Prairie provinces, while wind chill values in B.C.’s Interior were around –40.

The weather office also posted wind warnings for Victoria, Metro Vancouver and much of B.C.’s inner south coast with winds up to 90 km/h having the potential to bring down trees and cause power outages.

Our Morning Update and Evening Update newsletters are written by Globe editors, giving you a concise summary of the day’s most important headlines. Sign up today.

Follow related authors and topics

Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following.

Interact with The Globe