Motorists travelling over Kootenay Pass and Paulson Summit Monday and Tuesday (June 13-14) are advised to exercise caution as an unseasonable snowfall warning has been issued by Environment Canada.
A slow-moving low pressure system is expected to result in prolonged rain across the Kootenays this week.
As the airmass cools, snow levels are expected to drop to 1600 metres by late Monday evening resulting in rain changing to wet snow over higher elevations along Highway 3 including Paulson Summit and Kootenay Pass. Environment Canada is calling for 10 to 15 cm of snow on Kootenay Pass. The snow should turn to rain by late Tuesday morning.
Subscribers to ski forecast apps were surprised when the apps that usually are silent this time of year called for fresh snow at Red Mountain Resort near Rossland and Whitewater Resort near Nelson. Unseasonably cool temperatures have been the trend for the last six weeks in the West Kootenay with the Southeast Fire Centre’s weather forecaster reporting the first May in 35 years not to hit 25 degrees at any point in the month.
As area waterways are swelling from the recent rain and snow melt, the Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) issued an evacuation alert for the are of Six Mile near Duhamel Creek northeast of Nelson on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the River Forecast Centre has also issued a flood watch for the entire RDCK, but specifically highlights the Kaslo River below Kemp Creek, the Slocan River near Crescent Valley and tributaries around Creston and Nelson. A flood watch for the East Kootenay region has also been issued.
newsroom@castlegarnews.com
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