Multiple tornadoes reported after severe weather rolls through Saskatchewan

Environment Canada is reporting several “likely tornado” events in Saskatchewan in the afternoon and evening on Thursday.

Environment Canada says its meteorologists were tracking numerous dangerous rotating thunderstorms and all indicators point to numerous probable tornados however these are being investigated for confirmation.

The “likely tornados” took place at 4:20 p.m. near Hirsch, and then there were three within minutes of each other near Frobisher starting at 4:40 p.m. with the last one spotted at 4:49 p.m. Another tornado event at 5:05 southwest of Davin is being investigated. Also not yet confirmed but believed to have taken place are tornadoes at 5:52 p.m. near Odessa, another at 6:18 p.m. near Young and finally the eighth tornado at 9:10 p.m. near Hubbard.

There have also been photos posted on social media showing possibly two tornados very close to each other near Lajord which is 45 kilometres southeast of Regina. And there is video reportedly from Regina where a tornado was spotted on the edge of the city. Again, all are unconfirmed at this time.

The Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP) is sending a damage survey team from Winnipeg to Saskatchewan today. Environment Canada is also actively seeking pictures and video of the suspected tornadoes and/or any damage they may have caused. Should you have any information regarding these events, or to report severe weather at any time, please call 1-800-239-0484, email storm@ec.gc.ca, or post to #skstorm.

Environment Canada Meteorologist Terri Lang says there were eight reported tornadoes from Thursday, but that number could change after Environment Canada staff continue to go through reports.

“They’ll sift through that, go through the damage, because we know we have received some reports of damage in the southeast as well as some closer to Hubbard.”

Looking ahead to the weekend, she doesn’t expect any more tornadoes to touch down.

“There is a small chance that we might get some severe thunderstorms that might nick the extreme southeast corner of the province Friday, but for the most part, all the conditions that needed to come together to form all of those storms and tornadoes, they’ve all shifted further east.”

Lang adds that there were also reports of marble and pea sized hail, but damage was minimal.