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Yevhenii Tryfonov/Dreamstime.com

Medicine Hat severe thunderstorm watch lifted, systems bypass city

Aug 23, 2024 | 11:25 PM

Medicine Hat was spared a severe thunderstorm warning on Friday after storm systems moved up from the United States, causing rolling weather alerts across southern Alberta.

A severe thunderstorm watch was issued by Environment Canada for much of southern Alberta — including Medicine Hat, Redcliff and Cypress County — on Friday afternoon.

It was lifted shortly before 11:30 p.m.

Conditions were favourable for the development of dangerous thunderstorms that may be capable of producing damaging wind gusts and large hail, the federal weather agency said in an alert.

Many areas north and east of Medicine Hat — including Bowmanton, Irvine, Walsh and others — were given thunderstorm warnings.

Severe thunderstorm watches are issued when atmospheric conditions are favourable for the development of thunderstorms that could produce large hail, damaging winds, torrential rainfall or a combination of all or some of those elements.