It looks like we’re in for a soaker.
Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement, calling for heavy rain and strong winds starting around noon and lasting throughout the day tomorrow.
The storm is impacting the east Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast including:
- Courtenay to Campbell River,
- Duncan to Nanaimo,
- Nanoose Bay to Fanny Bay,
- Gibsons to Earls Cove, and
- Saltery Bay to Powell River
Precipitation will spread onto Vancouver Island late this morning and onto the south coast early this afternoon.
Strong southeasterly winds will also develop this afternoon.
Initially temperatures will be cold enough to allow some of the precipitation to start as wet snow over higher elevations of Vancouver Island and the south coast.
By tonight, warm air accompanying the storm will drive freezing levels and temperatures higher so that precipitation changes to rain for most communities.
The heavy rain and strong winds will continue all day tomorrow. The highest rainfall amounts will be over the central coast, north and west Vancouver Island. Areas of Squamish, northern sections of Metro Vancouver, and the Fraser Valley will also significant amounts of rainfall.
In areas where snow does accumulate, a higher chance of localized flooding is possible due to rain on snow.
It’ll also be unusually warm this weekend, with highs reaching 11 degrees Celcius tomorrow and eight degrees on Saturday.
The average high for this time of the year is 5.4 degrees.
