Heavy snow in Shawnigan Lake on Dec. 19.
Snowfall warnings issued for parts of Vancouver Island have ended as of Tuesday afternoon.
The special weather statements have also ended for Greater Victoria, Inland Vancouver Island and East Vancouver Island.
****PRELIMINARY**** #BCstorm snowfall amounts. Several alerts remain in affect, please see our alert page https://t.co/3Q1p0jXDqU for the latest #DriveBC pic.twitter.com/0vFBFZvVIE
— ECCC Weather BC (@ECCCWeatherBC) December 19, 2017
The winter storm on Tuesday shut down highways and led to fallen power lines across Vancouver Island.
READ MORE: Winter storm hits Vancouver Island, thousands without power
BC Hydro says they are working to restore power after the heavy, wet snow and freezing rain hit the province’s south coast. The winter storm has caused hundreds of power outages and has affected over 75,000 customers on Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and the Lower Mainland.
The hardest hit areas are Victoria, Nanaimo and Duncan. BC Hydro said all available crews will work through the night to make repairs and restore power. The Crown corporation added difficult conditions and extensive damage have created challenges for crews.
These conditions include heavy, wet snow which adds weight to branches and trees. The trees and branches can break and damage power lines, power poles and transformers.
BC Hydro crews have been receiving reports of downed power lines. The public is asked to stay at least 10 metres back and call 911 immediately if they see a downed power line.
For a current list of outages, visit BC Hydro.
Alexa Huffman
