Parts of southwestern Manitoba ravaged by severe thunderstorm

Posted on August 25, 2024 by Peggy

People living in southwestern parts of the province are assessing damage this morning after an intense storm system passed through overnight.

In Foxwarren, Man. – 300 kilometres west of Winnipeg – strong winds completely ripped off a large section of the community arena’s roof. Photos taken by area residents show pieces scattered nearby and puddles of water inside the rink.

Puddles and debris were scatted inside the Foxwarren Arena on Aug. 25, 2024. (Source: Danny Johnston)

Other properties and homes were also damaged by fallen trees.

In a post on X, the province announced that all lanes are closed at the Foxwarren access road along Highway 475 due to debris on the road.

Debris from the roof was scattered on the road outside the Foxwarren Arena on Aug. 25, 2024. (Source: Danny Johnston)

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), the thunderstorm began in Montana before making its way north. It developed into a bow echo storm – which appears on a radar in the shape of an archer’s bow and can produce very strong winds. It swept through southeastern Saskatchewan and into southwestern Manitoba, hitting the western side of Riding Mountain National Park near St. Lazare and Foxwarren up to Dauphin.

“The strongest gust we recorded so far was 106 kilometres an hour in St. Lazare,” said ECCC meteorologist Kyle Ziolkowski, but he added that the winds may have been even more powerful.

“No signs of a tornado as of yet, or reports of it,” Ziolkowski said. “What we’ve seen from radar didn’t appear like there was any tornadic circulations in the storm, so it just looked like wide swath of wind damage.”

The Interlake region was also impacted by the storm, with Gypsumville seeing more than 100 millimetres of rainfall last night.

“And then, of course, they have the storm that goes through again this morning that’s produced even more for them,” Ziolkowski said. “So it’s definitely not a good situation going on up there.”

The storm also knocked out power for thousands of customers.

According to Manitoba Hydro’s outage map, power is out for people living in St. Lazare all the way to Roblin. It’s not clear when it will be restored.