Southern Interior braces for big dump of snow

PENTICTON – Winter plans to return with a vengeance to the Okanagan and Kamloops tonight.

Environment Canada meteorologist Carmen Hartt says a system that brought nominal amounts of snow early this morning, Jan. 22, has since intensified as cooler than anticipated temperatures remain. The North Okanagan appeared to get the most snow this morning.

A strengthening high pressure system on the prairies is contributing to weather dynamics and intensifying a low pressure system, which is expected to reach the Okanagan this afternoon, bringing as much as 10 to 15 centimetres of snow to the valley bottom by tomorrow morning. Kamloops should see a little less snow, probably in the five to 10 cm range.

Early today, Environment Canada issued a snowfall warning for the Okanagan.

Hartt says higher elevations are already seeing some flurries today in advance of the system, which is expected to bring dry snow, as temperatures remain at or below 0 Celsius until after the front moves through.

Still, it won’t be anything like the weather being experienced in Eastern and Central Canada this week, where a powerful winter storm brought heavy snow and rain and bitter temperatures. 

Okanagan and Kamloops residents can’t complain too much about winter weather so far this year. Hartt says Penticton and Kelowna experienced a “statistically dry” December, with January being on the dry side for Kamloops, Vernon, Kelowna and Penticton.

“Normal precipitation for January in Kamloops is 21 mm, with only five mm so far this month. Kelowna, which normally receives 31 mm, so far has only 5.6 mm,” Hartt says.

Hartt says the snow overnight could affect commutes in the valley. Highway travel should be avoided if possible tonight as the brunt of the snow falls on the mountain passes overnight with a snowfall warning in effect for the Coquihalla Highway and the Okanagan Connector.

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