Vancouver snowstorm not expected to last

This morning, Lower Mainland residents awoke to find cars snowed in and transit routes swamped.

According to the Weather Network, a snowfall warning is in effect. Five to 10 centimeters of snow is expected to fall on Metro Vancouver and Victoria today, and 10 to 15 centimeters is expected for Whistler and much of the interior.

But to the relief of commuters and disappointment of schoolchildren, the early blast of winter is not anticipated to last long.

“We have a warm front moving in from the Pacific, and that's bringing the snow,” said meteorologist Brian Dillon in a story posted on the Weather Network’s website. “It will eventually transition over to rain in most places throughout the day Thursday.”

According to the Weather Network’s short term forecast, the shift from fluffy snow to slushy muck could come as early as this afternoon.

Five to 10 millimeters of rain is predicted to fall by the end of the day, and an additional 34 to 45 millimeters is likely to come by Friday morning.

The Weather Network’s predictions for the 14-day trend are looking equally wet. The Lower Mainland could see more snow on Sunday, December 5, and possibly during one or two other days that week. But other than that, residents can expect two weeks of clouds and rain.

According to the Vancouver School Board, all public schools in Vancouver are open today.

“Any decision to close schools will be made by 6 a.m. at the latest and will be announced via local media outlets,” the VSB’s website states. “School closures will also be announced as an alert on the front page of the district website, and notices issued via Facebook and Twitter.”

The VSB does not make announcements saying that schools are open. Only news of closures are broadcast.

The websites for the school districts of Burnaby, Richmond, and Surrey, also report that all public schools are open today.

Follow Travis Lupick on Twitter at twitter.com/tlupick.