Risk of funnel clouds diminishes for Weyburn, but damp forecast remains

Residents across the southeast shouldn't put their rain jackets away just yet, as a forecast of cool, cloudy, and wet weather is expected to dominate for the remainder of the week.

The damp forecast comes after a weather system on Monday brought reports of funnel clouds to southwestern Manitoba.

"We're going to have another system later this week that's kind of just sitting in the Dakotas," explained Crawford Luke, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. "There might be some cloud and some rain on the northern periphery that kind of sneaks into southeast Saskatchewan. So, that's kind of the cause of some of the cooler temperatures and the cloudy forecast."

Luke says the unsettled conditions are likely to persist for the rest of the week and into the weekend. He anticipates the system will finally move on by Sunday or Monday, allowing for a return to sunny and warmer weather.

The system creating this week's weather is the same one that brought severe weather to the region on Monday. While it spawned over 20 tornadoes in North Dakota on Sunday, its effects locally were much less severe. ECCC received reports of one or two funnel clouds in the southwest corner of Manitoba, with one confirmed near Virden. No funnel clouds, tornadoes, hail, or extreme winds were reported on the Saskatchewan side of the border.

Looking ahead, Luke said there is a chance for conditions to produce a funnel cloud or landspout tornado on Wednesday, but the risk is diminishing.

"It kind of looks like it would be better on the Dakota side, just because that's where that low is going to be hanging out for Thursday, Friday," Luke noted.

While a repeat of this past weekend, which brought nearly a month's worth of rain to some parts of the region, is unlikely, heavy downpours are still possible. Luke stated that the atmosphere has lost some of the moisture it held last week, but localized areas could still see significant rainfall.

"I wouldn't be surprised if Wednesday, even Thursday if someone had like an inch of rain," he said.