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A dramatic lightshow danced and crackled across Saskatchewan skies on Friday night and into the early hours of Saturday morning, as thunderstorms swept across the province.
On Friday evening, communities all around the Saskatoon area — from Blaine Lake in the north to Pike Lake in the south — were keeping an eye on the sky as Environment Canada said “thunderstorms formed in Montana have moved into the region and will last into the overnight period.”
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That prediction certainly came true in Saskatoon, where the “intense rainfall” overnight flooded both the north and southbound lanes of Idylwyld Drive at the Circle Drive overpass, and the city said crews spent a busy Saturday morning rescuing several vehicles that got stuck in the water.
By the time the storm cleared, Saskatoon had been drenched with over 24 mm of precipitation.
Late Friday night, Environment Canada also said a “dangerous thunderstorm” with heavy rain and winds gusting over 100 kilometres per hour was heading for southern Saskatchewan communities “from Swift Current … to the international border at Grasslands National Park.”
In the southwest, the village of Mankota saw nearly 17 mm of precipitation, with winds gusting up to 57 kilometres per hour.
On Saturday, Environment Canada issued new thunderstorm forecasts for the Regina and Yorkton regions, and the area of northern Saskatchewan between La Ronge and the Alberta border.
In the south, the forecast said communities were at high risk of being hit with high winds, torrential rain and hail, and there was also a tornado risk in the area.
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