Storm dumps snow on southern highway passes, damages hydro transmission on Sunshine Coast

Drivers in British Columbia's southern Interior are facing challenging conditions as a winter storm warning remains in effect with about 35 centimetres of snow blanketing theCoquihallaHighway between Hope and Merrittsince Monday night.

DriveBC says blowing snow and limited visibility will continue through Wednesday, while Environment Canada is forecasting a further 10 centimetres of snow.

A snowfall warning is also posted for Highway 3 from Hope to Princeton, where the weather office says the latest storm has dumped 30 centimetres of snow over the past 36 hours.

Howling winds and intense rain have also damaged what BC Hydro describes as "transmission structure" on the Sunshine Coast, prompting immediate repairs before another powerful storm is due to hammer the south coast on Thursday.

The utility saidvia social media that repairs will require a total power outage from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. PT, affecting the area from Lund to Saltery Bay, including the city of Powell River as well as Cortes and Texada islands.

The Powell River school district says on its website that the outage means all schools in District 47 will be closed for the day. Classes are expected to resume Thursday.