Snow and a tornado on the same day? Welcome to Canadian spring

Nathan Howes
·10 min read

Canadian springs are known for their turmoil and contrasting conditions, and this province demonstrated to the rest of the country just how true those words are.

Alberta saw late-April snowfall that has turned into an early-May event, which is not uncommon for the province, and its first tornado of the year this week –– both of which occurred on the same day.

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To make it even more interesting, the tornado was reported on Monday, April 29 near Kathyrn, Alta., east of Airdrie. Later that evening, snowfall was reported in the same area with a centimetre measured nearby at Calgary International Airport. Welcome to a Canadian spring.

The tornado was confirmed by the Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP) after video footage was sent to the agency.

Alberta tornado, near Kathyrn and Airdrie/Steve Brundige/Submitted
Alberta tornado, near Kathyrn and Airdrie/Steve Brundige/Submitted

(Steve Brundige/Submitted to The Weather Network)

NTP stated a witness recorded a video of the tornado as it developed beneath "a rapidly developing storm cell." Because the main storm was an isolated, non-rotating cell, the tornado was considered to be a landspout.

Since there was no damage reported, the twister was given a preliminary and default rating of EF-0.

Alberta tornado summary_EF-0 rating_April 29
Alberta tornado summary_EF-0 rating_April 29

Snow continues in Alberta as May starts

Meanwhile, the prolonged snowfall event didn't end when April did. It will continue into May 2, making for hazardous commutes in centres such as Calgary.

On Wednesday, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) released a summary of the reported snowfall totals so far during the multi-day event.

  • Southwest of Millarville: 46 cm

  • Longview: 23 cm

  • Near Benchlands: 20 cm

  • Calgary: 5-16 cm

  • Canmore: 33 cm

  • Kananaskis: 28 cm

Baron_Alberta snowfall summary as of May 1_May 1
Baron_Alberta snowfall summary as of May 1_May 1

ECCC then ended the summary by saying, "more snow is on the way," which is true because the precipitation won't ease until Thursday morning.

It didn't take long for Albertans to showcase the late-April and early-May snowfall on social media. Here are a few visuals that are currently making the rounds on X, formerly known as Twitter: