Freezing rain, flurries set to hit parts of B.C. over weekend

Environment Canada says freezing rain and flurries are set to hit parts of B.C. Saturday, and has issued more than a dozen weather warnings for heavy rain and snowfall at higher elevations. 

The forecast says some parts of Metro Vancouver could see upwards of 70 millimetres of rain through Saturday afternoon, with the warning stretching from Howe Sound to the Fraser Valley. 

The weather agency says the downpours come from a "robust and rain-laden frontal system" making its way across and inward through the B.C. coast. 

A winter storm warning for the North Columbia and Kinbasket regions says higher elevations could see up to 30 centimetres of snow, and cautions drivers of rapidly accumulating snow and poor visibility on roads. 

Environment Canada says the system is also bringing freezing rain to the Kootenay and Similkameen regions, causing icy and slippery conditions on routes, including Highway 3 from Hope to Princeton. 

The warnings say the hazardous conditions are expected to last through Saturday afternoon, and heavy showers in some areas are expected to ramp up in the evening. 

DriveBC was showing multiple highway closures due to the snow and freezing rain, with Highway 3 closed between Sunday Summit and Princeton, as well as between Highway 22 and Highway 3B, on Saturday morning.

Jesse Percival, an avalanche forecaster with Avalanche Canada, said the province recently received around 40 to 60 centimetres of snow, which has raised the avalanche hazard to high in a number of places, including the South Coast and the Interior.

"So it's a heightened avalanche danger essentially throughout the province, with the exceptions of a few places such as the Kootenay Boundary and the inner part of our upper northwest region," he told CBC News.

Percival said backcountry users should avoid avalanche terrain if possible, and be prepared if they're heading out on the slopes.