For the second consecutive night, over 100 individuals, accompanied by children and pets, sought shelter in the basement of a community hall as red tornado warnings illuminated their phones on Saturday evening.
Chris Stewart shared with CBC News during an interview on Sunday morning that they were having dinner in Aquadeo, Sask., when the fire alarm sounded again. Aquadeo, located 40 kilometers north of the Battlefords on Jackfish Lake, witnessed this unsettling event.
Initially, a few children were anxious, but overall, everyone remained calm as they congregated in the basement of the hall. On both occasions, there were more than 100 people seeking refuge in this area.
Environment Canada reported that multiple communities in west-central Saskatchewan, such as Turtleford, Glaslyn, Medstead, Edam, Paynton, Rabbit Lake, and Spiritwood, were under tornado warnings on Friday and Saturday due to a slow-moving system colliding with another system from Alberta.
Meteorologist Kyle Ziolkowski mentioned that while such occurrences are uncommon, they are not abnormal.
The severe weather on Saturday brought heavy rainfall, hail ranging from ping-pong to golf ball size near Neilburg, and wind gusts of up to 90 km/h near North Battleford. Environment Canada did not confirm any tornado touchdowns on Saturday night, but the situation was different on Friday.
Shannon Risling recounted how she and her daughter were at Jackfish Lake’s beach on Friday when they observed a wall cloud forming. They witnessed a tornado touching down for about four minutes.
Risling quickly reported the second touchdown to Environment Canada. Ziolkowski emphasized that their ability to track storms is limited, based on available data.
Looking ahead, Ziolkowski forecasted a return to calmer conditions in the Prairies with a ridge of high pressure in the coming week. By Sunday morning, Stewart was back on the water under clear skies, enjoying a day of fishing.
