Tornado watch issued as severe storms fire up on the Prairies
Tornado watches have been issued across parts of the Prairies alongside other severe storms
12:23 p.m. MT - A tornado watch is in effect across Alberta and Saskatchewan amid a severe storm threat June 25th. A tornado watch means that conditions are favourable for the development of tornadoes.
Pay close attention to the latest alerts in case the tornado watch is upgraded to a tornado warning in your area. Have a plan in place to seek safe shelter in case severe weather threatens your home, your office, or while you’re driving.
CURRENT TORNADO WATCHES (Alberta and Saskatchewan):
North Battleford - Wainwright -City of Lloydminster - City of Saskatoon - R.M. of Aberdeen including Aberdeen and more
The original article with the full forecast for Prairies continues below.
Severe thunderstorms are expected to impact large areas of Alberta and Saskatchewan on Wednesday, with additional strong storms shifting into Manitoba later in the week, as well.
These storms threaten powerful wind gusts between 90-100+ km/h, as well as the potential for large hail ranging from 2-4 cm in size.
Severe thunderstorms can contain updrafts of 120-150+ km/h, which are usually sufficient to support the weight of large, damaging hail.Supercell thunderstorms can pack updrafts of more than 200 km/h, which can support hail the size of baseballs or even larger.
SEE ALSO: From nuisance to nightmare: Huge hail is an extreme danger
Be sure to monitor local weather alerts and incoming conditions throughout the day.
Severe thunderstorms will continue into Thursday
While Wednesday saw large parts of the Prairies under threat of Severe Thunderstorms and Tornado warnings, Thursday will see a slight reduction in the scale of the storms. The thunderstorm risk will remain across Alberta and Saskatchewan, extending to include northern Manitoba.
Widespread scattered showers will continue across all 3 provinces, with storms expected to begin in the late afternoon and continue east throughout the evening.
The potential for severe weather shifts further east in Saskatchewan, while hail sizes of 2-4 cm and wind gusts exceeding 90 km/h remain possible with both isolated and linear storm systems.
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The environment is also set up for a chance of rotating storms across southern Saskatchewan closer to dinner time. But the main hazard still seems to be strong winds and large hail.
Similar weather to Wednesday’s storms can be expected.
Going into Friday, we’ll begin to see some of the highest amounts of thunderstorm energy that we’ve seen all week build up in southern Manitoba and southeastern Saskatchewan. This means storms that could trigger may not have much stopping them from becoming severe.
We will also see widespread risk for isolated thunderstorms, including Alberta’s foothill hailers, continue into Friday.
The same trough that brought widespread thunderstorms Wednesday will move east into southeastern Saskatchewan, tracking into southwestern Manitoba. Mixed with the juicy atmosphere, it’ll trigger severe thunderstorms between Estevan, Alberta, all the way to Brandon, Manitoba.
2-4 cm hail and 90 to 100 km/h winds are expected to continue during Friday’s storms.
Forecasters are monitoring the risk of a rotating storm along the Canada-United States border, so it will be important to stay updated on the evolving weather conditions.
Temperatures trend closer to seasonal values by the weekend
After a rather chilly start to the week, temperatures will trend back to near seasonal by late week. A warmer pattern will develop next week, with above seasonal temperatures forecast for early July.
Western areas are expected to see a few days of drier weather early next week. However, Alberta is likely to experience unsettled, stormy conditions during the latter half of the week.
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Stay with The Weather Network for more information and updates on your weather across the Prairies.