Another storm expected to hit Metro Vancouver

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METRO VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Following a series of rainfall warnings, Metro Vancouver is now bracing for yet another stormy day.

Meteorologist Russ Lacate says Friday’s storm will be all about the wind.

“A very narrow, sort of tightly wound of low pressure carving across Vancouver Island. It all depends on the exact track that that system takes as to who will get the strongest winds and where they’re really going to be servicing,” he says.

The further you go into the Fraser Valley the stronger the winds will be. Metro Vancouver will see slightly less powerful gusts, as strong as 90 kilometres an hour tonight.

RELATED: PHOTOS: Flooded streets, submerged cars in Metro Vancouver following heavy rainfall

This intense system is bearing down on us almost exactly 12-years after the monster storm of 2006 that destroyed 10,000 trees in Stanley Park.

Environment Canada is warning this storm could damage buildings and adds that with the ground already saturated, heavy rains could cause more flooding in the evening.

Already we’re seeing power outages in North Vancouver, Port Moody and Burnaby. And BC Hydro is using the calm before the storm as an opportunity to remind people to stay away from downed hydro lines.

In the mountains, that rain turns to heavy snow – and special avalanche warnings have been issued along the south coast and sea to sky.

Avalanche Canada is warning people to avoid avalanche terrain this weekend and says only experienced skiers and boarders should be in the backcountry.

Steve Andrews has formal safety training but still managed to set off a size-2 avalanche on Whistler mountain on Thursday.

“I could feel the snow compressing underneath me, what I didn’t expect was that it would propagate about 30 feet on either side of me,” he said. “Created just a huge fracture.”

WATCH: Power line safety

 

He said his mistake was seeking out steep terrain while the danger rating is so high.

But that’s not all, Lacate warns of a second storm hitting the region this Saturday night and Sunday.

“It really packs a punch too,” Lacate adds.

On Thursday, some areas of Metro Vancouver saw as much as 84 millimetres of rain within 24 hours. Vancouver Airport broke a record for Dec. 13 with 67 millimetres.

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