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B.C.’s Puntzi Mountain shatters record lows at -48 C

School buses cancelled, but classes open for kids in the Cariboo Chilcotin School District
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All schools in School District 27 are cancelled for Jan. 15, 2020. (File photo)

School buses are cancelled yet again in B.C.’s Cariboo and Chilcotin regions – for a third straight day for some kids – because of the extreme cold.

Although the buses are not running, schools in District 27 are open, and teachers will be there.

The weather station at Puntzi Mountain, west of Williams Lake, was the coldest place in the province once again on Wednesday, with a mind-numbing temperature of -48 C at 6 a.m.

A day earlier, Puntzi Mountain reached -48.8 C, breaking the previous record of -43.4 C set in 2005.

Read More: School buses cancelled in Cariboo, Puntzi Mountain records -48.5C

The extreme weather, with blowing snow and unusually cold air, has closed most schools in the south coast, with officials telling commuters to stay home.

The forecast Wednesday in Williams Lake is for sunshine to start off, with increasing clouds in the afternoon followed by periods of light snow. Ice-fog patches will dissipate near noon with a wind of up to 15 km/h and a daytime high of -25 C.

The wind chill will be -43 C in the morning and -33 C in the afternoon. Frostbite can occur in minutes.

Environment Canada is calling for about five centimetres of snow overnight and a temperature of -25 C.



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Angie Mindus

About the Author: Angie Mindus

A desire to travel led me to a full-time photographer position at the Williams Lake Tribune in B.C.’s interior.
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