As temperatures begin rising above zero, storm-related disruptions continue, with more than 9,000 BC Hydro customers without power on Vancouver Island this morning, some school closures and more bus cancellations and delays.
All Friday sailings of the Mill Bay-Brentwood Bay ferry are in danger of being cancelled as BC Ferries has been unable to find enough people to crew the Klitsa.
Here’s what you need to know about how today’s weather is affecting Vancouver Island.
Weather warnings
A freezing rain warning remains in place for the Malahat from Goldstream to Mill Bay until temperatures rise and it becomes rain.
There’s also a winter storm warning in place for Inland Vancouver Island forecasting freezing rain and snow.
A snowfall warning is in place for East Vancouver Island between Courtenay and Campbell River on Friday morning. Another two to four centimetres is expected to fall before it warms up and starts to rain.
Meanwhile, Avalanche Canada is reporting a high avalanche risk in most of Vancouver Island south of Port McNeill.
“Heavy loading from new snow, wind, and rain will create very dangerous avalanche conditions,” says Avalanche Canada, advising people to avoid avalanche terrain and exposure to overhead hazard.
Highway and road conditions
DriveBC is reporting winter driving conditions on Island highways, including slippery and slushy sections and limited visibility due to heavy snowfall in some areas.
Views of some intersections are available through Transportation Ministry highway webcams.
Emcon Services, which maintains highways on the south Island, reported vehicles driving in excess of 90 km/h Thursday night and causing traffic incidents on Thursday night and reminded drivers to slow down and drive to conditions.
Mainroad, which looks after highways on the rest of the Island, reminded people to stay back from plows.
A snowplow in the Interior was nearly struck by an out-of-control semi on Thursday, and a man died in Abbotsford after being struck by a plow.
BC Ferries sailings
All sailings of the Klitsa between Brentwood Bay and Mill Bay are in danger of being cancelled on Friday as BC Ferries says it has been unable to find enough people to crew the vessel.
The following sailings have been cancelled:
• 7:30 a.m. departing Brentwood Bay
• 8:05 a.m. departing Mill Bay
• 8:40 a.m. departing Brentwood Bay
• 9:15 a.m. departing Mill Bay
• 9:50 a.m. departing Brentwood Bay
• 10:25 a.m. departing Mill Bay
• 11 a.m. departing Brentwood Bay
• 11:35 a.m. departing Mill Bay
All sailings for the remainder of the day are also at risk of cancellation, BC Ferries said in its service notice. “Customers with a suitable vehicle may consider travelling via the Malahat Highway.”
You can find the status of other routes on the BC Ferries status at-a-glance page.
School status and closures
Schools in Greater Victoria SD61, Saanich SD63 and Sooke SD62 are open Friday. Gulf Islands SD64 has a planned non-instructional professional development day.
Campbell River School District is closed due to snow conditions. Pacific Rim School District has also decided to close all schools in the Alberni Valley on Friday.
Most other school districts on Vancouver Island are open today but many report possible delays and route changes for their bus services.
In the Sooke School District, most buses are running but others are cancelled and rerouted. In East Sooke the R 33 is cancelled due to driver illness, R 32 will stay on Gillespie and East Sooke Road, R 15 canceled due to illness, routes in the Highlands will stay on Millstream Road, and while much snow is reported on Bear Mountain, the district is monitoring that route.
Nanaimo Ladysmith School District has cancelled bus service on Friday.
Colleges and universities
Vancouver Island University has closed its Nanaimo campus for the morning and the rest of its campuses for the full day. The Nanaimo campus will be open for afternoon classes beginning at noon or later.
North Island College's campuses in Campbell River, the Comox Valley and Port Alberni are shut down and all classes, including digital ones, are cancelled.
Royal Roads University is open on Friday, with some winter weather adjustments and the gardens are closed. The university says students should check with their instructors for class delivery information.
Camosun College and the University of Victoria are both open.
Power outages
There were 19 power outages affecting 7,020 BC Hydro customers on the north Island as of 8:45 a.m., mostly in Courtenay and Qualicum Beach.
Another 2,401 were without power in the south Island, with the 23 outages concentrated in the Duncan area and on Galiano Island, along with a small pocket in Saanich south of Prospect Lake between Munn Road and Interurban Road.
Check BC Hydro’s outage page for up-to-date information.
Transit detours
One B.C. Transit route — No. 35 — remained suspended in Greater Victoria at noon on Friday "due to conditions on Haliburton Road," said B.C. Transit spokesman Jamie Weiss.
“Routes that include elevation are continuing to prove challenging, but as road conditions continue to improve BC Transit expects service levels to increase,” said Weiss.
Several other routes are being detoured or have altered routes. See the Greater Victoria alert page for current information.
All buses in the Cowichan Valley were on adverse weather routing due to the snow and road conditions.
In Nanaimo, there were several routes with detours and expected delays.
Other closures, delays and cancellations
For a third day, curbside recycling pickup in the capital region has been cancelled.
