In the first six days of the year, the Peace Region has already recorded half of the precipitation it typically receives in January.
According to Environment Canada meteorologist Derek Lee, those extreme conditions follow a December that was also out of the ordinary.
“In Fort St. John, we had a total of 66 millimetres of liquid water recorded, which is 227 percent of normal,” Lee said.
He explained that the amount of water recorded translates to about 70 to 100 centimetres of snowfall.
That ranks December 2025 as the fourth wettest month of December on record.
Along with heavy snowfall, Lee said December was much colder than normal and stayed that way longer than usual.
He said the average temperature was -20 degrees, which is about nine and a half degrees colder than normal.
That month was the fifth coldest December ever recorded.
Lee added that the Peace Region is usually known for fluctuating temperatures, but this year was different.
“We didn’t really see these positive temperatures come in because the pattern over Northern BC was very stagnant,” he explained.
Lee said a high-pressure system brought cold arctic air and became stuck above the peace region.
Looking ahead, lee said he expects a warmup in the area, adding that temperatures could rise above zero over the weekend.
However, he noted that the warmup may be temporary, as colder weather may return midway through the month.