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Parts of southwestern Saskatchewan are under a tornado watch after Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) issued an alert on Monday afternoon.
The watch stretches east-west from Last Mountain Lake, just northwest of Regina, to the Alberta border and north-south, spanning roughly Lloydminster to Eston.
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Also included in the alert are Saskatoon, North Battleford, and Kindersley.
#skstorm large funnel and good rotation a few mins ago west of Harris. pic.twitter.com/eKSXhFOlpH
— Apophis (@RathrBStrmChsng) June 23, 2025
According to ECCC, conditions in these areas, “are favourable for the development of funnel clouds and possibly brief, weak tornadoes” this afternoon and evening.
While it’s rare for funnel clouds to become tornadoes, ECCC meteorologist Crawford Luke said it’s a possibility.
“On occasion, sometimes one of them will get into contact with the ground and that’s when it becomes a tornado, and that’s when it begins to pose a public safety risk in terms of damaging property,” Luke said.
A tornado ripped through farmer Barrett Eberle’s home near Kronau last on June 19, causing severe property damage. (Nicole Garn/980 CJME)
The alert comes just days after Saskatchewan had eight “likely tornadoes” on June 19, which ECCC meteorologist Eric Dykes called then a “tornado outbreak.”
In comparison, Luke said the, “risk is not thought to be as high today.”
According to Luke, Saskatchewan was, “dealing with a different type of thunderstorm” last week, calling it a supercell thunderstorm.
“Those are primarily the cause for a lot of the stronger tornadoes that we tend to see in Canada,” Luke said.
If a tornado were to happen today, Luke said it would be classified as a landspout.
“Typically, they’re a lot weaker than supercell tornadoes, and they don’t have as long a damage path, so they tend to be a bit less of a public safety concern,” Luke said.
Luke didn’t downplay the severity of landspouts, which have been known to cause property damage on occasion.
“If people do see what looks like a scary funnel cloud or perhaps a tornado forming, they should still take it seriously as a tornado like any other tornado, Luke said.
A Facebook image from the village of Plenty, posted Monday afternoon by Tyler McIntosh, showed pea-sized hail.
According to Luke, if people see a tornado, they should try and get as low as possible.
That could mean going into a basement, bathroom, stairwell, or interior closet and putting as many walls as you can between yourself and outside.
If you’re caught outside when a tornado hits “try to find a low point or a ditch and lie in that and cover your head,” Luke said.
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