Tornado!

It has been confirmed. The NW portion of our province has seen the deadliest tornado to touch down in Ontario in over 20 years. 2 men are confirmed dead and one is still missing after a tornado touched down in Ear Falls. These victims were vacationing in the popular hunting and fishing area from Oklahoma. Very sad. So what does this system mean for us here in the Kawarthas. Well looking at this latest GFS run we could get wacked by high winds, thundershowers and maybe hail tomorrow morning. It is only a chance but all of the ingredients are there for some nasty weather. And remember...it doesn't take a tornado to take a life. Straight line winds can be just as deadly. Fingers crossed we catch a break but we could see a rough start to the day early tomorrow morning. Let's hope for some clearing late in the afternoon.

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's the ISS?

Not only were we treated to a great show courtesy of the Proclaimers at last night's Festival of Lights but the night sky also had a special treat for us. Clear conditions meant a great view of the International Space Station as it streaked across the sky shortly before 10pm and boy was it moving quick! Thanks to Phillip Chee of Peterborough for sending in this pic. You can really see the ISS in this photo taken with four 1 minute exposures. (Although the blog limits me from providing a larger image we'll get on the cast tonight at 6pm). The station was definitly the brightest object in the sky and was movning so fast it was gone in a matter of minutes. Great pic Phillip! As for the weather tonight? Expect a few clouds, more sun and warm weather tomorrow. Showers and maybe thundershowers could arrive as early as tomorrow evening.

Here kitty kitty kitty...

Well…we caught a break today. A lot more sunshine than expected. It feels good doesn’t it? It’s always a good thing to steal a nice day back from Mother Nature, although pop up showers are still possible this evening. Do you want some more good news? Alright…here you go. Expect clearing tonight and a mix of sun and cloud tomorrow. As for Friday we’re likely to see further clearing and a seasonal daytime high of 27. Welcome news for you lovers of summer. Although that system above looks to play the spoiler role for Saturday, it may not be that bad of a weekend with clearing on Sunday. Fingers crossed the rain holds off Saturday for Rib-Fest.

Oh and just in case you needed a laugh today below is a funny pic Amanda sent in from Madoc. I can’t speak for how popular I am with our human audience this summer…

At least Amanda’s kitten Pattycake seems to be a fan. Thanks for sending in the pic Amanda!

CANWARN

It’s official! I am now officially a “card carrying” Environment Canada CANWARN Severe Weather Spotter. Seriously…I have a card. Very cool! It’s in my wallet next to my National Weather Association membership card. I just wanted to blog today about this great organization of weather spotters. Earlier this morning I had the opportunity to sit in on a CANWARN training course in Keene with Geoff Coulson. Geoff is Warning Preparedness Meteorologist with Environment Canada and a great instructor. As a weather nerd I really enjoyed his presentation and found it very informative. CANWARN has been in existence since 1987 and this organization of weather spotters are literally the eyes and ears on the ground for Environment Canada. Satellite and radar do NOT tell us everything about a storm and their will always be a need for these trained volunteers. Oh…and you don’t have to be a HAM radio operator to be a storm spotter. Get the details by clicking here.

As for the weather…tonight and tomorrow could be a good time to spot storms. We’re sitting under a low and thundershowers are possible. It looks to be a wet week.