Whitecourt Summer Storm

Brandi | August 5, 2012

The start of the summer storm that hit Whitecourt yesterday. These photos were taken by Amber Luciak between 4:42 and 4:52 pm Aug 4, half way between Fox Creek and Whitecourt on Highway 43.
Photo submitted by Amber Luciak.
Photo submitted by Amber Luciak.

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Thunderstorm watch warnings were in effect yesterday by Environment Canada and remain in effect today for Fox Creek, Whitecourt, Edson, Swan Hills and Mayerthorpe.

On August 4, Fox Creek did not experience any rain or wind, however 74 kms south on Highway 43, our neighbors in Whitecourt was hit hard by a summer storm.

Environment Canada reports 100 km/h winds in the area around 5 p.m. Saturday, August 3.

XM 105.3 reported the worst affected areas are Chickadee Drive and the Lions campground, on the east side of Whitecourt. Fallen trees have damaged a number of recreational vehicles in the area and buildings.

RCMP officials estimate 150 rural buildings were affected as a result of Saturday’s storm. The Red Cross is at the Allan and Jean Miller Center in Whitecourt helping those affected by the storm. There are no reports of injuries.

A number of tornado reports were called in however Environment Canada confirmed there were no tornados touched down in Whitecourt or anywhere in Alberta yesterday.

Extensive damage in the Whitecourt area is said to have been caused by extreme winds, some call a microburst.

A microburst is a very localized column of sinking air, producing damaging divergent and straight-line winds at the surface that are similar to, but distinguishable from, tornadoes, which generally have convergent damage.

There are two types of microbursts: wet microbursts and dry microbursts. They go through three stages in their life cycle: the downburst, outburst, and cushion stages. The scale and suddenness of a microburst makes it a great danger to aircraft due to the low-level wind shear caused by its gust front, with several fatal crashes having been attributed to the phenomenon over the past several decades.

A microburst often has high winds that can knock over fully grown trees. They usually last for a duration of a couple of seconds to several minutes. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org)

For more information, checkout these links:

CTV Edmonton: https://www.facebook.com/CTVEdmonton

Mytown.ca https://www.facebook.com/pages/MyTownTodayca/120169971424930?ref=ts

and 96.7 The Rig, Whitecourt’s Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/967TheRig