Thunderstorm dumps on Whitecourt, causes flash flooding

So far, this summer has seemed more like a monsoon season. Rather than wondering when it might rain next residents have been left wondering when the sunshine might make an appearance instead. On July 31, the morning started off with warnings in place for extreme heat in the southeast portion of Alberta and thunderstorms in the west. It also happened to be the 32ndanniversary of Black Friday, the day the worst tornado in the province’s history struck Edmonton.

You couldn’t blame anyone for being a bit edgy when dealing with severe thunderstorms lately considering Alberta meteorologists have already recorded 21 tornadoes; the most in a season since 1988 when there were 26 confirmed. Thankfully, the tornadoes have all been categorized as lower-rated, either EF0 or EF1. That doesn’t mean they are any less dangerous, though, especially when you factor in the wind speeds from 90 to over 130 km/h.

Whitecourt and area lucked out in terms of tornado activity on July 31 but the storm that hit just after suppertime brought high winds, hard rain, booming thunder, and hail. Depending on where you resided you either saw pea-sized hail or a bit bigger. You also might have been left with a rather large puddle. Several streets and parking lots were turned into mini lakes following the deluge. Over by the main post office, on 51st Avenue, the water was nearly knee deep and covered up the curb on both sides of the road. Parked vehicles appeared to float as the water nearly reached the top of their tires.

In front of the mall, on 49th Street, the water wasn’t quite as deep, but it stretched into the mall parking lot and down near Friendship Park. Vehicles driving through it created waves that splashed up onto the buildings. Another particularly deep spot was 48A Street behind Central School. The entrance of Nelson Crescent, corner of 48th Street and the sharp turn were completely submerged. Cars could be seen pushing water up onto their hoods as they drove through it.

As residents made their way outside following the storm, pictures quickly littered social media. A couple of adventurous folks even took their kayaks out for a float in River Valley Estates while others took pictures of themselves standing nearly knee-deep on what used to be roadways and sidewalks. The storm dumped a ton of rain on Whitecourt in just 20 minutes. The rain was sideways at times while the wind roared, and the hail came down like bricks. It was certainly one of the most active storms this year.

The rain made its way into Walmart bypassing the tills and spilling out across the floor and into a large area of the store. Stunning footage from inside No Frills showed a waterfall coming from the ceiling near the ice cream section and several other businesses reportedly suffered including Majestic Studio Yoga & Meditation located downtown, and the movie theatre.

Whether by strikes or wind, several trees were snapped around the Central School area. One on the far side of the school, on 52nd Avenue, fell onto a fence just feet from a house. Another tree was damaged around the corner on 47th Street. The massive branch landed squarely on the sidewalk saving both the house and fence from damage.  The unstable air mass that hit Whitecourt created widespread havoc throughout the province with several severe thunderstorm watches and a tornado warning near Sylvan Lake. Significant rainfall was also recorded. It is unknown as of this writing just how much Whitecourt received.