The recent Oklahoma tornadoes have a lot of local people remembering.
It’s been 13 years now but you never do forget. In fact, a lot of people involved in the aftermath of the Pine Lake tornado still probably think about it every single day at this time of the year.
We know it can happen here, too.
With Canada being second only to the U.S. in tornado activity, we can’t help but be aware of what’s going on to the south of us.
Some of the Oklahoma stories — like the three veteran storm chasers being killed, and an entire panicked family being swept away in a storm drain as they sought shelter — are reminders that severe weather can be extremely dangerous, and many times fatal.
Central Alberta has a kinship with our U.S. neighbours who live in Tornado Alley, albeit not one we cherish.
The good news is there are things that people and communities can do to be more resilient against weather disasters.
We get our share of winter storms, but it’s the warm weather storms that we should probably fear the most.
To underline this, the Insurance Bureau of Canada is now pinpointing Alberta as weather disaster central in all of Canada.
The Pine Lake tornado was the single most destructive natural disaster to ever hit this area — the likes of which we never want to see again, but we have no say in this. What we do have a say in is how we respond and deal with it when it happens.
If you were here when the Pine Lake tornado struck in the early evening of July 14, 2000, forgetting about it is not an option.
It was just one short-lived F3 category tornado in a relatively low population area. But it took 12 lives, injured about 100 people and caused $13 million in damage.
Tornado strength is rated on a scale of F0 to F5. An F3 tornado would have winds of between 254 and 332 km/h. An F4 would be between 333 and 418 km/h. The damage from an F3 would be considered “severe;” from an F4 “devastating;” and an F5, at 419 to 512 km/h, “incredible.”
The Edmonton tornado of 1987 that occurred 13 years before Pine Lake was an F4. Twenty-seven lives were taken, 300 were injured, and it remains the most destructive and second deadliest tornado Canada has ever seen ($332 million in damages).
Both Edmonton and Pine Lake rank as being among the top 10 deadliest tornadoes ever in Canada.
Every year, as humidity and temperatures start to rise, the terrible stories of death and destruction begin again. As does the anxiety and fear when the weather watches become warnings, and the supercells start to swirl and bang about.
I hope Central Alberta, or anywhere else for that matter, never has to relive a tornado. But just in case, emergency preparedness for disaster is ongoing, at least by those who will be called upon as first responders.
A recent report by the Insurance Bureau of Canada says Alberta leads the way in disaster insurance payouts. And aging infrastructure, like storm and sewer drainage leading to flooding, is going to make things so much worse, and the bureau is urging it be updated.
The bureau said last week that 62 per cent of all insurance losses from natural catastrophes in Canada last year were in Alberta.
Oh, oh — here comes the rationale for increasing deductibles and/or rates.
Severe weather events that used to happen once every 40 years are now happening once every six years, with more homes and vehicles being damaged, according to the insurance bureau. The bureau says Alberta’s 2012 claims totalled more than $730 million for damage caused by weather. (The increase is in part due to more buildings and more population.) The bureau said the industry may seek changes to building codes that would require tougher materials.
In the meantime, what can we do?
It’s simple really.
You may not be able to stop your roof from being torn off but you can do things like understanding the risks a tornado or other severe weather presents (for example, flooding, water, power and phone outages), have a plan in place should disaster occur and, of course, have an emergency kit.
The rule of thumb is to have enough in your emergency kit to survive for 72 hours. Hopefully, by then rescuers — if you need them — will have arrived.
There’s plenty of information available on many websites, including the City of Red Deer’s and Public Safety Canada, to help prepare for disaster.
As recently as Sunday, a tornado touched down for about five minutes in the Maple Creek, Sask., area. Rain, hail and flooding occurred. There were no injuries, thank goodness.
Mary-Ann Barr is the Advocate’s assistant city editor. She can be reached by email at barr@www.reddeeradvocate.com or by phone at 403-314-4332.