Wintry weather fails to stop rites of spring
Last Updated: Sunday, April 20, 2008 | 5:25 PM PT
CBC News
People in Southern B.C. received a surprising taste of winter this weekend, but the cold weather did not stop close to 170,000 people from attending several popular spring events.
Residents across Southern B.C. woke up to unseasonal April snow Saturday morning.
(CBC)
Up to 30 centimetres of snow fell on parts of the east coast of Vancouver Island overnight Friday, knocking out power to 7,000 BC Hydro customers in the Nanaimo, Ladysmith Comox areas and parts of the Gulf Islands.
Smaller snowfall amounts also caused problems on highways and roads in mainland B.C, with the Coquihalla Highway closed overnight Friday for seven hours because of snow and poor visibility.
Organizers estimated 100,000 people turned out to watch the Vaisakhi parade in South Vancouver on Saturday.
(CBC)
In Vancouver, snow fell on the North Shore Mountains, and along the Fraser River and into Richmond, but it was not enough to stop the annual Visaikhi celebrations hosted by the Sikh community's Ross Street Temple.
On Saturday, with morning temperatures barely above freezing, nearly 100,000 people turned out to watch the annual parade wind through the "Little India" section of southeast Vancouver.
More than 50,000 people took part in the Vancouver Sun Run on Sunday.
(CBC)
And on Sunday, with temperatures hovering around 5 C, an estimated 59,000 runners and walkers braved the cold, many in shorts and T-shirts, for the annual Sun Run 10-kilometre road race.
Later in the day, an estimated 10,000 people staged a smoky celebration outside the Vancouver Art Gallery calling for the legalization of marijuana.
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