Tornado dismantles metal storage building southeast of Regina

Aug 23, 2023

A family and their friends spent part of Monday cleaning nearby fields of debris in the aftermath of a tornado that stripped their storage building and spread its scraps over a few kilometres.

"That tornado ate it," said Jennifer Kreklewich, who lives on the property with her husband, Cole Zinkhan, and their two kids.

The damage to the property, about 11 kilometres southeast of Regina's city centre, is the only wreckage documented by Environment Canada from Saturday night's tornado.

It's also the first tornado in Canada this year, according to Environment Canada meteorologist Terri Lang.

"Some people are saying, 'Is it early?' No, it is not early for tornadoes. We're in storm season now and everybody should be prepared," Lang said.

She was uncertain how long the tornado was active, although storm chaser Craig Boehm, who was tracking the tornado, said it touched down shortly after 9 p.m. CST. He estimated it travelled about five to six kilometres during the approximately six minutes it was active.

The last recorded tornado in Saskatchewan was Aug. 4, 2022.

Zinkhan was confused when his neighbour texted him Sunday morning to see if he and his family were OK.

They were at their cottage celebrating Kreklewich's birthday. It wasn't until his neighbour sent photos of his metal storage building that he woke up his family and packed to go home.

Kreklewich said while the exterior is basically gone, the items inside aren't as affected. Their homes, within 100 metres of the shed, are untouched.

The building is insured, Zinkhan said, but he is now in the process of going through the insurance claim.

"It's a pain in the butt, but deal with it as it comes, I guess," Zinkhan said of the wreck.

Parker Schikowski, whose family is renting the nearby land to farm, said the incident hasn't delayed seeding and spraying much.

He said his land extends a few kilometres away and the debris reached it.

Environment Canada's initial assessment of the tornado was an EF0, the lowest on the "enhanced Fujita" scale, which rates the tornado based on the wind speeds, determined by the damage it causes.

"A lot of people think it's the size of them and that's not the case — so if they don't hit anything, we can't rate them," Lang said.

The rating was assigned before Environment Canada was aware of the damage to Zinkhan's farm. Lang said surveyors were headed to the site on Monday afternoon and their examination could change the tornado's rating.

During the weekend, the Regina area was also hit by thunderstorms accompanied by heavy rain and spiky, golf-ball sized hail.

Reporter

Dayne Patterson is a reporter for CBC News in Saskatchewan and is based in Saskatoon. He has a master's degree in journalism with an interest in data reporting and Indigenous affairs. Reach him at [email protected].

With files from Laurence Taschereau and Richard Agecoutay