3rd storm in as many days could hit B.C. on Saturday
Environment Canada says it's not clear where the storm will hit
After two days of storms, Vancouver Island and the South Coast may not yet be free of the rain and wind.
The remnants of Super Typhoon Songda are expected to hit the west coast late Saturday afternoon, creating gusts of up to 90 kilometres per hour and the potential for strong rain.
The only question is where it will hit.
"It's a very unusual system in that it's incredibly powerful, but very unstable. Its path has been wobbly," said CBC weather presenter Amy Bell.
"When it does get to us, it will have lost a little bit of power, but will still be enough to generate substantial winds."
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Environment Canada issued a special statement on Monday about the typhoon-aided system, but it's still unknown whether it will hit Vancouver, less than 24 hours before it's expected to make landfall.
According to meteorologist Michel Gelinas, the reason is its relatively small size.
"It's not a large front that blankets the whole coast," he said. "What it is, is a compact area of low pressure that will be moving through the coast, and the low centre itself will be moving through very close to Vancouver."
A snapshot of the most recent model tracks for tomorrow's storm. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wawx?src=hash">#wawx</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Seattle?src=hash">#Seattle</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WAwind?src=hash">#WAwind</a> <a href="https://t.co/veI8wTsxsc">pic.twitter.com/veI8wTsxsc</a>
—@NWSSeattleWhether it hits Washington State or the Lower Mainland, the impact will be severe. Environment Canada says "wind warnings will again be issued for multiple regions over the South Coast," if the system heads that way.
Meanwhile, the U.S.-based National Weather Service is warning people in the Seattle area to expect tree damage, power outages and heavy rain.
Gelinas puts the probability of the South Coast avoiding the worst of the storm at 30 to 40 per cent, and says the winds will be at their peak between 9 p.m. and midnight on Saturday.
"There's still a significant chance that the system might stay south of us, and the Puget Sound area might get very hard hit, but not us," he said.
As for the effects of three days of storms? While there is still risk of flooding on the North Shore and on Vancouver Island, Bell says Friday's storm might blunt further damage on Saturday.
"We've had so much debris and trees come down today, that even though the winds could be as powerful tomorrow, we may not see as much damage."