Mail and school buses cancelled in Prince George after more than 30 cm of snow falls in 24 hours

Extreme winter weather hit northern parts of British Columbia, causing Canada Post to cancel mail delivery in Prince George after more than 30 cm of snow fell on the city in less than 24 hours.

The city's school bus service was cancelled in the morning and many of its routes have been cancelled this afternoon. Several public transit routes were delayed as crews focused on clearing high-priority routes.

Prince George received 31 cm of snow between Monday at 7 a.m. PT and Tuesday at 7 a.m. PT as a snow system moved through B.C., according to Environment Canada.

Watch | Digging out after heavy snow:

Heavy snow and high winds blast Prince George

2 years ago

Duration 0:45

Mons Aase helped dig people out of a heavy snowfall that hit their rural community just outside Prince George, B.C., Monday and Tuesday. More than 30 centimetres fell in under 24 hours which, along with strong blasts of wind, made digging out more difficult. Video credit: Charlene Creuzot.

Smithers, about 1,120 km northwest of Vancouver, received 21 cm, while the Coquihalla Summit, about 220 km east of the city, received 22 cm.

Extreme cold setting in

In addition, extreme cold weather is expected in northern B.C.

In Prince George, temperatures could fall to -27 C with the wind chill Wednesday afternoon and to -29 C overnight on Thursday, Environment Canada said.

The weather authority is predicting even colder weather in the Peace River region in B.C.'s northeast, and has an issued an extreme cold warning through Wednesday. An arctic air mass and northerly winds are expected to see temperatures as low as -40 C with the wind chill.

Meanwhile, B.C.'s Ministry of Transportation has urged drivers in the Lower Mainland to avoid unnecessary travel and to prepare for snowy and slushy conditions Wednesday.