Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) released a preliminary report today on the July 1st tornado near Didsbury. 

The tornado was rated as an F-4 which means devasting. The official tornado scale goes to F-5 which means incredible. There were estimated wind speeds of over 275 km per hour. 

The severe thunderstorm developed near Sundre and intensified as it approached the Didsbury area around 1:45 pm. The heaviest damage was reported where the tornado crossed highway 2A between Didsbury and Carstairs. 

The tornado caused damage to 12 homes, of which 3 were completely destroyed, and 4 were left uninhabitable.  

All homeowners who ECCC spoke to received the tornado warning notification.  

The most recent Alberta tornado with an equivalent rating was the Edmonton tornado in 1987. The July 14th, 2000 tornado near Pine Lake was rated as an F-3 event. 

**with information provided by ECCC.

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