Vancouver may be a rainy city, but in August it's relatively dry, with an average of 36 mm of rain.
However, up to 50 mm of precipitation could fall on Friday, Aug. 15, according to Christy Climenhaga, a scientist with Environment Canada, drenching the city with a month's worth of rain.
"There's a little mini atmospheric river situation going on," she tells V.I.A.
The rainfall will come and go in just over a day, she says, with clouds arriving Thursday evening, and showers starting overnight.
Early Friday morning the heavier rain will arrive, affecting the morning commute.
Higher terrain areas, like North Vancouver, are expected to be hit hardest, while lower-lying areas will receive closer to 30 mm of rain.
"I haven't heard of major concerns, but it is going to be a good dose of rain," says Climenhaga. "We'll likely have some alerts coming out for this one in the region."
She advises people to keep an eye out for weather alerts and watches over the next 36 hours.
Cooler temperatures along with rainfall
While the rain will dampen the city, it'll also cool it. A high of just 18 C is expected Friday. At the same time, the clouds will insulate the city, so Friday's overnight low is 17 C.
The short-lived storm will ease up overnight on Friday.
"It's a decent dose of rain in about 24 hours," Climenhaga explains.
People planning to be outdoors this weekend may want to wait for Sunday.
"There will likely be some rain on Saturday, but not as heavy," she says."It looks like Sunday is clearing out."
Some showers may fall on Sunday, but it'll be relatively insignificant. Highs of 23 C are expected Saturday and Sunday, which also happens to be opening weekend of the 2025 Fair at the PNE in Vancouver.
