Dangerous travel mixed with winter fun as southwest B.C. experiences 2nd snow day in a row

Snow and freezing rain forecasts across southwestern British Columbia have caused a second day of school closures and travel delays in both the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island.

All school districts in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley cancelled classes early Thursday, and in-person classes were also cancelled at the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, BCIT and Capilano University.

Schools were open on Vancouver Island Thursday morning but by the afternoon worsening weather had led to the cancellation of several school bus pickups and after-school events.

Parents have been told to check with their local school districts for details.

Making the best of the situation, many children and adults have hit the outdoors, skiing and sledding in local parks in the rare winter weather. In East Vancouver's Strathcona neighbourhood, dozens of residents gathered for an impromptu snowball fight Wednesday night.

"Families, kids, dogs, everyone's running around and having fun," said participant Coltild Orozco.

According to Environment Canada, preliminary figures show 27.2 centimetres of snow had fallen at the Vancouver airport by Thursday morning, with more than 30 centimetres observed by weather watchers in other parts of the Lower Mainland.

In Metro Vancouver, snow started falling again around noon. The amount of snow that fell overnight on Wednesday would mean it was Vancouver's snowiest day since Dec. 29, 1996, when the city's airport recorded 40.9 cm.

It would also be one of Vancouver's top 10 snowiest days on record, according to CBC weather specialist Darius Mahdavi.

There are also dangers associated with the weather, a fact underlined by the death of a 31-year-old man in Abbotsford early Thursday morning after he was struck by a snowplow while walking along a road parallel to the Trans-Canada Highway.

Const. Scott McClure said visibility was poor when the incident occurred and a recent dump of snow had forced pedestrians off sidewalks and shoulders onto roads.

People who use mobility aids are also experiencing challenges navigating uncleared sidewalks. Tanelle Bolt, a design and accessibility consultant based in Langford, said snow from streets and driveways is often plowed onto sidewalks and curbs, making navigation nearly impossible.

"I see it every single time it snows," she said. "It's not understood [by the wider community]."

The province's Ministry of Transportation said in a release that its maintenance contractors were preparing for freezing rain and snow through the Fraser Valley, in Metro Vancouver, along the Sea to Sky Highway, and on southern and central Vancouver Island.