Blanket of wet snow creates commuter woes across Metro Vancouver

Dec 19, 2016 | 5:45 AM

VANCOUVER — A blanket of heavy, wet snow cut off power to thousands in British Columbia and caused commuter chaos in Metro Vancouver on Monday.

The snowfall caused trees or branches to come down over power lines and at its peak, about 18,000 people were without power, most of them on the Lower Mainland and the Sunshine Coast.

Snow also caused a tree to topple over rail lines, stopping passengers on the West Coast Express from coming into the city.

Commuters trying to move around southern B.C. had to deal with heavy slush and icy conditions that caused numerous traffic accidents and long traffic delays.