Coquihalla Highway closed for several hours due to severe weather

The CoquihallaHighway was closedbetweenHope andMerritt, B.C. for part of Thursday evening dueto severe weather and poorroad conditions.

Several dozendrivers were left stranded in their vehiclesbefore the roadway reopened around 10 p.m. PT.

Stefan Rzadzinskiand Mike Czajagot stuck near the summit around 4 p.m. on their way from Edmonton to Vancouver.

Rzadzinski said traffic was brought to a standstill.

"A lot of people are outside their cars. The rest are in their cars staying warm," he told CBC News. "Hopefully everyone's got enough gas to make it down the mountain."

Environment Canada also issued snowfall warnings for a number of other major highways in B.C. on Thursday.

"It's really focused on those high elevation mountain passes," said Environment Canada meteorologist Ross MacDonald.

Snow at higher elevations

MacDonald said there weren'ttoo many flurriesin the valleys, but you don't have to go too far outside those dips to findsubstantial snowfall.

More than 30 centimetres of snow was expected between Hope and Merritt, with a heavier accumulationpredicted forthe summit.

Warnings were also been issued for Eagle Pass to Rogers Pass and along the Sea to Sky highway between Squamish and Whistler.

Drivers told to wait if possible

Not only will the snow affect what you can see, MacDonaldsaid, but it will also build up quickly in some areas. The expert warned drivers to take care on the roads.

There will likely be a weather window Friday with conditions deteriorating again on the weekend, he said.

Drivers who need to travel should take time to check conditions on on DriveB.C.'s website and look at the Environment Canada forecast for their area.