Updated at 8:03pm Wednesday, June 28th - as of shortly after 8pm Wednesday evening the Tornado Watch was ended for all regions of Southern Manitoba.
For the remainder of the evening there is a small chance of additional showers or thunderstorms, but additional severe weather is not expected. The overnight low will reach around 16.
Be sure to check back Thursday morning for a full recap of precipitation totals with our PembinaValleyOnline Rainwatchers.
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You may have been surprised to see a Tornado Watch issued for our area, but Environment and Climate Change Canada says it was not a mistake.
Meteorologist Terri Lang says the watch was issued for the Pembina Valley area, Portage la Prairie, Brandon, Winnipeg, Steinbach, the Interlake, and many areas in between. However, she notes there is no need to panic.
"We know that the conditions over Southern Manitoba are favourable for the development of thunderstorms through the day today, and those thunderstorms have a possibility of becoming severe," says Lang. "The ingredients are there that tornadoes could develop out of those. We saw one develop yesterday, so we just wanted people to have that awareness. Not to freak them out."
Lang says a watch is different from a warning. A watch means the conditions are favourable for severe weather, while a warning means severe weather is imminent and you need to get to a safe place immediately.
"With respect to tornado warnings, when you hear one, and if it's for your region, please act accordingly," says Lang. "That means getting inside a sturdy building, to the lowest level that you possibly can, into an interior room, away from windows and doors. Closets are good, crawl spaces, stuff like that. Get in there, and protect yourself until the threat has passed."
- with files from Randy Lilley and Shannon Dueck -
