Vancouver Island under snowfall warning with wet snow forecast for Metro Vancouver

More snow is on the way for Vancouver Island and the South Coast on Sunday and into Monday morning, according to Environment Canada.

A snowfall warning is in effect for all of Vancouver Island, including the Malahat Highway from Goldstream to Mill Bay.

"This system is moving across from northern Vancouver Island to southern Vancouver Island," said Environment Canada meteorologist Johnson Zhong. "Highways a bit further inland ... by Campbell River could get up to 20 centimetres of snow."

He said much of Vancouver Island will see five to 10 centimetres of snow in communities near the water and 10 to 15 centimetres inland.

A special weather statement has also been issued for much of Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Howe Sound and Sunshine Coast.

Two to five centimetres of snow mixed with rain is expected in Metro Vancouver, Zhong said, but residents in higher terrain like Coquitlam and the North Shore could see up to 10 centimetres by Monday morning.

"This is not Arctic air. It's kind of a maritime cold mass, so it's going to mostly be wet snow and at times a mixture," he said.

Challenging road conditions

With wet snow forecast for Monday morning, drivers are being asked to follow road conditions and check for updates on DriveBC before heading to work.

"We're not expecting large accumulations but just enough to make it kind of a little bit more of an inconvenience for commuting," said Darren Ell, the general manager for Mainroad Lower Mainland Contracting.

He said crews have been putting salt brine on the roads and are scheduled to start plowing once the snow starts to accumulate on Sunday evening into Monday.

"Once the snow starts coming down, we'll have different plows on and ready to push the snow off, then switch over to rock salt and crystal salt to make sure that the roads are dry," he said.

Ell is reminding drivers to slow down and stay back if they see a snowplow on the road.

"Stay back at least six or seven car lengths from a snowplow because there's chemicals coming out of the back end," Ell said. "Don't pass on the right-hand side. The snow is being pushed out to the right and the trucks have big wing plows that are hard to see. So please stay away."

Multi-vehicle pile-up Sunday morning

Surrey Fire Service is urging people to drive for icy conditions, especially on overpasses, after a multi-vehicle collision on Sunday morning.

Photos from the scene show about 10 vehicles, including a bus, collided in a chain reaction in the southbound lane of King George Boulevard near the Colebrook Road overpass. 

"While the RCMP will be conducting an investigation ... we can't comment on the cause of the accident," Surrey Fire Services Assistant Chief Ben Dirksen told CBC News. "There were no major injuries and I'm not sure if anyone was transported to hospital."

He reminded drivers to lower their speed and follow road conditions.

"Sometimes overpasses and bridges can be icy this time of year," Dirksen said. "It's probably a good reminder for people, when driving, to consider their road conditions and temperatures."