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'This is going to be a total gongshow, isn't it': Vancouver residents struggle to handle 'snowpocalypse'

Christine Jean-Baptiste
·Contributing Reporter
Updated ·4 min read
'This is going to be a total gongshow, isn't it': Vancouver residents struggle to handle 'snowpocalypse'

This week, Vancouver experienced, as some say, a snowpocalypse.

The island had its first major snowfall of the season that swept over B.C.'s South Coast, leaving Canadians without power, stuck in traffic, and unprepared for the slippery roads ahead.

According to a new report by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) , the Lower Mainland received between 10 to 20 cm of snow. Over inland and Eastern Vancouver Island, they accumulated around 15 to 25 cm of snowfall.

On Tuesday, the snowfall caused severe traffic backup. Many Canadians had around a nine-hour commute for a trip that usually takes less than an hour.

While some were stuck in traffic, more than 300,00 people were left without power.

Many schools were closed, however, students at the University of British Columbia were stranded on campus due to bus delays and cancellations.

Critics say the island's infrastructure is not built for snow, and worry what another major natural disaster would do to the region.

Some also wondered why residents were not prepared with winter tires. As reported by CBC News, “A 2021 survey commissioned by the Tire and Rubber Association of Canada found only 57 per cent of British Columbians owned snow tires, compared to the Canadian average of 76 per cent.”