Not the Canada Day We Were Expecting

Kizzie · July 02, 2023, 03:01:19 PM

So in Canada July 1st is a big holiday -- Canada Day -- with parades and fireworks and so on. This year we got much more than we bargained for though. We don't get a lot of tornados here, but yesterday we got a pretty good one and very close to us. Fortunately we live in a rural part of the province so it mostly took out crops, some livestock and a few farm houses. Could have been way worse as it was really close to our town and two others as it made its way across the prairie. No-one was injured or killed thankfully. Very grateful it didn't do more damage than it did, especially with everyone outside for the day. It formed really quickly.

NarcKiddo · July 02, 2023, 03:40:06 PM

YIKES! I'm glad you are unscathed (physically, at least, though I imagine it must have been very scary).

SteveM · July 02, 2023, 05:31:17 PM

Glad you are ok, that is terrifying to the bone!

Kizzie · July 02, 2023, 05:33:51 PM

OK, well to be honest I was having a nap and slept right through it

My H didn't get me up because it moved past our town so quickly. We're going out this afternoon to see the damage so I imagine that will be somewhat unnerving.

Good thing we moved here from British Columbia to get away from all the wildfires

Bach · July 02, 2023, 05:47:47 PM

Very scary. Glad you are okay, Kizzie.

Moondance · July 02, 2023, 06:51:34 PM

That is crazy weather and way to close to home.

So glad to hear you are okay.

Kizzie · July 03, 2023, 03:20:39 PM

Thank you, it really was too close for comfort. We went to look at some of the damage yesterday and it was just a couple of kms up the road leading out of Carstairs (my town) where it hit two of the five or so houses and farms it took out. That first picture with the sign to Didsbury etc is about where the two farms were that were hit so it was taking them out as the picture was taken.

I've seen what the wrath of tornadoes can do on TV but there's nothing like seeing it up close and personal. Just devastating. If it had hit our town or any of the ones in the area it would have been really bad. I'm not religious but I thank my lucky stars that's for sure.

dollyvee · July 04, 2023, 07:20:50 AM

Hi Kizzie,

It's hard to read about the changing weather in Canada the past few years, thinking of the massive forest fires and flooding in BC recently. To me, it just really shows that climate change is a "thing" and makes me more frustrated at the lack of government attention it gets to actually do something about it and stop it.

Glad you were safe,
dolly

Kizzie · July 04, 2023, 02:51:36 PM

Tks Dolly, even though there was a tornado too close for comfort we're still glad we made the move from BC to here as BC is really getting hit what with wildfires, flooding, and landslides. The "eco-anxiety" I had there was too much for me layered on top of the trauma I deal with. The year we made the decision to move, there were wildfires on three sides of us. Very, very scary.

dollyvee · July 06, 2023, 06:32:18 AM

It is scary. I was speaking with my aunt earlier this year who lives in BC and she said it's going to be a bit of an anxious summer because of the weather. It's a definite real concern that to me, feels like it has grown much more present over the past decade.

Kizzie · July 06, 2023, 03:28:32 PM

That's the thing, it is the new normal because of climate change. My H worked with Emergency Management BC so we were privy to the projections for the province. Not good I'm sorry to say. I totally understand your aunt feeling anxious.

Blueberry · July 07, 2023, 06:48:39 PM

Glad to hear you're OK Kizzie. Also good to hear you slept through it because I imagine that would help keep anxiety down? Easier to deal with after-the-fact anxiety - at least it is for me.

Kizzie · July 07, 2023, 09:05:21 PM

Definitely BB, if I'd have seen it OMG. It was an F4 according to the weather gods. Feet don't leave me now!

sanmagic7 · August 14, 2023, 02:29:39 PM

you know, kizzie, i've always thought Canada was a place of refuge - guess that comes from my Vietnam War days - but that nothing bad really happens there. this new onslaught of fires, tornadoes, and whatever else is happening there which wasn't happening before makes my heart sad. my D and i have even talked about moving there just to get away from here. (i told her there was someone on our forum who's from there, and i'd write and ask if their country had room for 2 more! lol!)

i'm glad you weren't hurt from any of that stuff. eco-anxiety, yeah. real thing. i'm on board w/ climate change, and also upset that gov. isn't doing more to combat it. sucks.