Welcome warming Pacific breezes brings end to Arctic flows, but changing weather may bring snow

The brilliant blues of the last week is about to get a makeover
as warmer air and clouds move into the Prince Rupert area

After a week of Bright Blue Skies, but bitterly cold Arctic winds and temperatures, those taking a walk this afternoon in Prince Rupert were finding a welcome warming trend. 

That as a Pacific flow begins to push the Arctic air back to whence it came, while skies cloud over heralding the pending change to our weather.

And while as of 3:45 PM  Environment Canada still had the Arctic outflow warning in effect for the city and surrounding communities, the lack of layers and assorted winter clothing seen around the city this afternoon would seem to indicate that as the Family Day weekend arrives, the cold will be banished.

But what comes next will most likely depend on how fast the warm replaces the cold.

The view over the city from Summit this afternoon shows
clouds moving in and with them significantly warmer
and more seasonable  temperatures for Prince Rupert

As we move into the three day weekend and share in the opportunities to spend time with family members, the weekend forecast calls for Periods of Snow, shifting to Rain as the weekend moves through the three day break.

So far, Environment Canada has not gone out on a limb to provide a projection as to how much snow may fall on the North Coast or along the Highway 16 corridor.

You can keep up with the latest Prince Rupert forecast updates from the Environment Canada website.

Weather forecasts for the corridor can be reviewed below

Terrace
Kitimat
Smithers
Burns Like

Haida Gwaii will all but banish winter from their thoughts by Monday when they reach a daytime high of 7.

For those who may have to do some travelling this weekend, the Drive BC website and twitter feed will provide an update on road conditions.

You can also get a heads up on road conditions through our archive of Highway cameras across the region.

Update: Environment Canada ended the Arctic Outflow warning at 4:30 Friday afternoon

For notes on past weather events see our archive page.