Monday, May 16th 2022, 12:09 pm - Canada's first tornado of the year was reported in eastern Ontario on Sunday afternoon.
Ontario got a true taste of early summer-like weather this weekend, with the rising heat and humidity that spanned the province, as well as Canada's first tornado of 2022.
MUST SEE: Tornado 101: What you need to know about staying safe
The weak landspout tornado was reported in Casselman, a village in eastern Ontario, southeast of Ottawa.
According to the Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP), it was rated as an EF-0 with no injuries or damage reported.
"Witnesses captured video of a landspout tornado south of Casselman," the NTP stated on Sunday evening. "The tornado appeared to remain over open fields and no injuries or damage have been reported at this time."
Just had a 10 minute long funnel dance around south of Casselman. #onstorm pic.twitter.com/mTDdQp72MG
Just had a 10 minute long funnel dance around south of Casselman. Dom. G on Twitter: "Just had a 10 minute long funnel dance around south of Casselman. #onstorm pic.twitter.com/mTDdQp72MG / Twitter" Dom. G on Twitter: "Just had a 10 minute long funnel dance around south of Casselman. #onstorm pic.twitter.com/mTDdQp72MG / Twitter"
— Dom. G (@dominic_goulet) Dom. G on Twitter: "Just had a 10 minute long funnel dance around south of Casselman. #onstorm pic.twitter.com/mTDdQp72MG / Twitter"
5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k
5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022:
— Instant Weather Ontario (@IWeatherON) Instant Weather Ontario on Twitter: "5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k / Twitter"
Funnel cloud captured by our own Instant Weather Ontario on Twitter: "5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k / Twitter" near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?
- Adam Instant Weather Ontario on Twitter: "5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k / Twitter" Instant Weather Ontario on Twitter: "5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k / Twitter" Instant Weather Ontario on Twitter: "5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k / Twitter" Instant Weather Ontario on Twitter: "5:09 PM - Sun, May 15, 2022: Funnel cloud captured by our own @dominic_goulet near Casselman, southeast of Ottawa. It has since lifted. Did anyone else see this?- Adam #onstorm #wxtwitter @NTP_Reports pic.twitter.com/3tTCSmtn3k / Twitter"
It was the favourable wind dynamics that supported the development of this rope-like landspout tornado on Sunday afternoon.
"As thunderstorms approached the region, local winds converged with enough wind shear present in the atmosphere to allow a highly localized spinning motion near the surface that created a condensation funnel, which developed into a landspout," explains Kelly Sonnenburg, a meteorologist at The Weather Network.
Tornadoes are a threat to many parts of Canada during the summer months, and even if the environment is extremely favourable for supercell tornadoes, forecasters have limited ability to say when or if a specific storm will produce a tornado.
Residents are urged to always stay on top of the weather alerts and warnings in your area when severe conditions are forecast and to identify a safe place in your home where household members and pets will gather during a tornado. See more tornado safety tips, here.
Thumbnail image courtesy: @dominic_goulet/Twitter