Pine Lake tornado
The Pine Lake tornado was a deadly tornado in central Alberta which occurred on Friday, July 14, 2000 and struck a campground and a trailer park. Twelve people were killed, making it the first deadly tornado in Canada since 1987, when an F4 tornado killed 27 people in Edmonton, Alberta and injured 300+.[2]
| F3 tornado | |
|---|---|
 Pine Lake tornado | |
| Formed | July 14, 2000 7:00 p.m. MDT |
| Max. rating1 | F3 tornado |
| Highest winds | |
| Damage | $13 million ($18.2 million in 2018 dollars[1]) |
| Casualties | 12 fatalities, 100+ injuries |
| Areas affected | Green Acres Campground, Alberta, Canada |
| 1Most severe tornado damage; see Fujita scale | |
Summary
On July 14, 2000 at approximately 7 PM, an F3 tornado tore through the Green Acres Campground at Pine Lake in central Alberta, killing 12 people and critically injuring more than 100 others. Pine Lake is a recreational area approximately 25 km (16 mi) southeast of Red Deer, Alberta and 150 km (93 mi) northeast of the city of Calgary. The tornado formed out of a severe thunderstorm which formed on the eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies and moved rapidly eastward, encountering a narrow band of low-level moisture that caused it to develop into a supercell thunderstorm. It touched down about 5 km (3.1 mi) west of the campground and was on the ground for approximately 20 km (12 mi).
Damage occurred in a swath 800 to 1,500 metres (0.50 to 0.93 mi) wide. The heaviest damage occurred in a 500 metres (0.31 mi) central corridor. Damage assessment suggests that winds within the central corridor reached 300 kilometres per hour (190 mph). In addition, Weather Watchers reported hail as large as baseballs.
An average of 16 tornadoes occur in Alberta every year, and an average of 41 tornadoes occur each year in the Prairie Provinces. The highest death toll due to a single tornado in Alberta occurred on July 31, 1987, colloquially referred to as Black Friday. Canada ranks second in the world for tornado occurrences after the United States.
Chronology
- 5:37 PM Mountain Daylight Time (MDT) – Environment Canada issues a severe thunderstorm watch for the Red Deer area, including Pine Lake.
- 6:18 PM MDT – watch upgraded to a severe thunderstorm warning, indicating that a thunderstorm with potentially large hail, very heavy rain, intense lightning and dangerous winds had developed.
- 7:00 PM MDT – the tornado destroys a number of recreational vehicles in the Green Acres Campground on the western shore of Pine Lake. 12 people are killed and more than 100 critically injured.
- 7:05 PM MDT – RCMP notify Environment Canada that a tornado had just been reported at Pine Lake. The severe thunderstorm warning was immediately upgraded to a tornado warning.
- After 7:05 PM MDT – Warnings and watches were continued through the evening hours. In all, more than 40 watches and warnings were issued for Alberta and Saskatchewan as the storm crossed the provincial boundary.
See also
References
- Canadian inflation numbers based on Statistics Canada tables 18-10-0005-01 (formerly CANSIM 326-0021) "Consumer Price Index, annual average, not seasonally adjusted". Statistics Canada. November 15, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020. and 18-10-0004-13 "Consumer Price Index by product group, monthly, percentage change, not seasonally adjusted, Canada, provinces, Whitehorse, Yellowknife and Iqaluit". Statistics Canada. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
- Leger, Marie-France (July 11, 1994). "La tornade qui a frappé St-Charles a fait un mort, le Dr Laurent Claveau (St-Charles Tornado kills local doctor)". La Presse. p. A1.