The Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) reports that strong storms have brought devastating winds to the northern and southeastern corners of the province. Terri Lang, a meteorologist at the ECCC, says Sunday’s storm was a superstorm capable of carrying a tornado. “Once the danger of a tornado passed, the storm began to widen. And it was then that the danger of these really strong winds became quite apparent,” Lang said. And there you have it! “Localized flooding” Hwy 8 Rocanville 1630h today after pic.twitter.com/rEYvt1V9tw – @ JeffHamonPhoto Lang said there were no confirmed reports of tornadoes so far, but that the wind was still causing significant damage. “We saw one or two videos with some very strong winds and it was referred to as a tornado. But meteorologists looked at it, it looks more like what we would call gusts or strong winds coming from the storm. It can do a lot of damage,” Lang said. Leakage outflow in Moosomin, SK knocked down this mark. 16:08. pic.twitter.com/IQoByaI2TH – @ Mahairy93 Lang said the ECCC has also received reports of flash floods, along with a golf ball and tennis hail, in the southeast. This photo was taken near Langbank, Sask. “We had a lot of reports of heavy hail. “It looks as big as baseballs to tennis balls,” said ECCC meteorologist Terri Lang. (Bucky Boren) Lang said the storm was so severe that the ECCC decided to issue the first “Emission Invasion” after upgrading its warning system. The system is also used for Amber Alerts and other emergency bulletins. Lang said the storm was moving northeast across the county, breaking power lines in places like Kipling, about 145 kilometers southeast of Regina and Pelican Narrows, about 420 kilometers northeast of Saskatoon. “Then the danger of these really strong winds became quite obvious,” Lang said. Crystal Leggett was in Kipling to celebrate Father’s Day when the storm hit. “It was a complete whiteout when wind and rain came out,” says Leggett After the storm passed, they toured the community to investigate the damage. “The tree branches hanging on the power lines were also a little scary,” says Leggett. Joel Cherry is SaskPower spokesman. “We have damaged both the transmission lines and the distribution lines in the southeastern part of the province, especially on transmission lines, higher voltage lines,” Cherry said. This photo was taken near Moosomin, Sask. “Once the tornado risk passed, the storm began to widen,” Lang said. (Mhairi McDonald) Cherry said the wind had hit trees on power lines in the Pelican Narrows, but that power had been restored to the northeast by 12:45 p.m. CST Monday. In the southeast, crews were still working today to restore service. Cherry said there were still 175 to 200 customers without electricity in the Moosomin / Wapella area. Lang said the ECCC is still seeking photos or videos of the storm from the public. Ask people to tweet with the hashtag #skstorm or email ECCC.
