A special weather statement issued for much of British Columbia’s southern coast and parts of Vancouver Island is warning of “strong and gusty” winds starting on Monday.

The notice from Environment and Climate Change Canada says wind gusts up to 70 km/h are expected to start late Monday afternoon and continue into Tuesday morning.

It says a “vigorous” cold front will cross the South Coast on Monday, developing strong westerly winds in its wake.

The statement covers communities including Metro Vancouver, Greater Victoria and east Vancouver Island as well as the Southern Gulf Island.

Environment Canada says strong wind gusts may toss loose objects and break tree branches.

The agency says both local utility outages and disruptions to services and travel are possible.