Arabnews24.ca:Wednesday 18 May 2022 06:01 AM: A landspout tornado appeared to touch down in south central Saskatchewan Tuesday night.
While not confirmed by Environment and Climate Change Canada as of 9 p.m. CST, the tornado was spotted by Rob Been near the village of Keeler around 7 p.m. CST.
Been told CBC News he was taking a post-supper nap when he was awakened by loud thunder. The next thing he knew, a tornado appeared to be forming.
Unconfirmed tornado near Moose Jaw, Sask.
Duration 1:56
"You're awestruck at just the sheer power and the volatility of it," said Been.
"The winds came up so quick, the hail came down in a hurry. That thing formed almost out of nowhere."
Environment and Climate Change Canada did not issue a warning for a possible tornado in the area, however a severe thunderstorm warning was in effect at the time. Portions of central and southeastern Saskatchewan were placed under severe thunderstorm watches shortly afterward.
Been said he isn't aware of any damage close to his property at this time. He still can't believe how close he was to the storm.
"Being a truck driver, I've seen tornadoes off the in distance before but never this close," he said. "Kind of as close as I'd like to get, honestly."
Dayle Bueckert also found herself surprisingly close to the storm.
The Saskatchewan farmer was driving with her kids north along Highway 2 from Moose Jaw when she spotted the apparent landspout tornado.
"It formed right in front of me and I was like, 'whoa, this is crazy,'" she said. "I wasn't going to stay in the storm so I continued driving ... I only got mostly rain and hail."
Bueckert said hail varying between pea to nickle size fell at their home near Eyebrow.
As for damage, Bueckert and her husband are planning to assess their recently-seeded canola farm near Keeler Wednesday morning.
If confirmed, Tuesday's landspout tornado could be the first reported in Saskatchewan in 2022.
