Severe thunderstorm risk looms over the Prairies this week

For many folks across the Prairies, Canada Day may have been anything but a day for enjoying outdoor festivities. Sizzling heat brought a widespread thunderstorm risk and severe weather to the region on Monday.

The forecast may have brought back memories of Alberta's Canada Day tornado last year. The EF4 tornado destroyed several homes between Didsbury and Carstairs, Alta. It was also recognized as the highest-rated tornado to touch down in Alberta since 1987.

While there were no EF4 twisters this Canada Day, tornado warnings were issued across parts of southern Saskatchewan and Manitoba as severe storms rolled through in the evening.

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Although there has been no confirmation of tornadoes touching down on Monday, storm chasers and enthusiasts on social media were quick to post photos and videos of multiple funnel clouds produced by the storms.

Continuing into the first week of July, the thunderstorm risk will persist across the Prairies, as well as a swath of severe weather to watch out for.

Scattered thunderstorms Tuesday bring widespread severe threat

The same low-pressure system that brought storms to the Prairies on Monday will continue tracking eastward on Tuesday, dragging along the risk for severe storms in northwestern Ontario.

On the central Prairies, a boundary—essentially the area between cold and warm fronts—will spark a swath of scattered thunderstorms extending from northern Alberta to southeastern Saskatchewan.

Some of the storms in the afternoon and evening could become severe in nature, with the primary risks being nickel-sized hail and strong wind gusts.

Storm energy and risk stick around Wednesday through Thursday

The storm threat will stick around through the week, with the boundary and severe weather risk shifting out of northern Alberta on Wednesday. The severe threat will stick around, however, for much of Saskatchewan and western Manitoba.

Heavy rain, strong wind gusts, and large hail are the main hazards we will be looking at on Wednesday.

Southern Manitoba has the greatest thunderstorm energy potential heading into Thursday, so be sure to keep an eye on the sky and stay weather-aware.

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Storms will still be scattered through the week, so not everyone may see daily thunderstorms, but the ingredients for storm development will be present nonetheless.

Temperatures will also continue to err on the cooler side before a pattern change takes hold in the second half of the month.

Stay with The Weather Network for more forecast information and updates on your weather across the Prairies.