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Pedestrians in downtown Chilliwack, B.C.

Nowhere in B.C. is safe this week from the onslaught of winter's piercing cold, pelting snow and icy roads.

Residents across the province faced the beginnings of a week of negative temperature and heavy snowfall on Monday, with between 10 to 20 centimetres falling in the Lower Mainland. And in the northern and interior regions, the cold Arctic air coupled with surging winds created wind-chills as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius.

These conditions are expected to continue, if not worsen, until at least the weekend, said David Jones, a meteorologist at Environment Canada.

"As the week progresses, the weather's going to get increasingly interesting across the province," Mr. Jones said. 'These dynamic conditions are just part of the natural variation in the weather, but it's somewhat irregular for the cold Arctic air to come this very far south."

Conditions caused commuter chaos in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley during Monday morning's rush hour. Buses and cars were skidding and sliding all over the hills and highways after significant snow fall started in the morning.

"We had some situations where our buses couldn't make it up 10th Avenue towards UBC, and at 16th and Oaks where there's a long hill," said Drew Snider, spokesman for Translink, Metro Vancouver's transportation authority.

The road conditions were so dangerous that the RCMP urged people not to use the TransCanada Highway east of 232nd Street on Monday afternoon. Vehicle collisions also led to closings on the Coquihalla Highway and the Stewart-Cassiar Highway.

"The conditions are extremely treacherous, and a large number of vehicles are going off the road," RCMP spokesman Sergeant Peter Thiessen said of the TransCanada Highway.

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