June Ends a Cold 8-Month Trend

     With an average mean temperature of 17.6°C, June 2013 was 0.7°C above normal making it the first warmer than normal month since September 2012! It was also much drier than normal with an almost 20 mm deficit, making it the 5th consecutive drier than normal June. However, not the entire city saw these low amounts thanks to some localized heavy thunderstorm events at the end of the month. Charleswood saw an amazing monthly total of 152.7 mm! At my place in south St Vital, only 69.4 mm fell.

     Because temperatures weren't all that extraordinary, thunderstorms were the biggest story of the month for 2 different reasons. Our first thunderstorm of the year at the airport was on June 10, making it the second latest start to the thunderstorm season since these records began in 1953. The resulted 289-day streak without thunderstorms was the longest ever. However, Mother Nature sure made up for the loss in the second half of the month with several thunderstorm events in southern Manitoba.

     June 2013 thunderstorm chronicle

     Hail was the biggest story with Winnipeg's first storm, and severe storm of the year on June 10. Nickel sized hail pounded areas from the northwest to southeast ends of the city. The hail caused some minor damage, especially to gardens. The Jardin St. Léon Garden Centre on St. Mary's was hard hit.
     Wind gusts over 60 km/h were also recorded at the airport.
     Thunder with the storm was almost constant. From my point of view in south St Vital, the thunder was like rolling a ball on the floor for 30 minutes.
     10 mm of rain fell at The Forks with the storm, while not a drop fell in the southwest and extreme southern ends. Other rainfall amounts can be seen here.

     Quasi-stationary thunderstorms on June 20 created big flooding problems in western parts of Winnipeg. Sitting over the Charleswood, Tuxedo and Linden Woods area for more than an hour, it dumped up to 75 mm of rainfall. That's around 80% of the normal monthly total in just over 2 hours! Many roads and businesses, including Ikea, saw flooding.






     This photo from June 22 is of a stationary thunderstorm west of Portage la Prairie at sunset. Storms kept reforming in this area for several hours in the late afternoon and evening. As a result, in excess of 150 mm of rainfall fell according to radar estimates, but over a very localized zone.
     In addition, large complexes of thunderstorms pushed through southwestern Manitoba in the evening on June 21 and in the overnight June 22. Another round of storms pushed into the area on June 23. With both complexes, in excess of 100 mm of rain fell in some areas, including Brandon. Overland flooding and street flooding were a major problem. The town of Reston was hardest hit with as much as 150 mm of rainfall.

     On June 25, I issued the year's first moderate risk of severe thunderstorms and for good reason. Another round of severe storms packed a punch on all of southern Manitoba. Yet more flooding rains drenched southwestern Manitoba. Reston received an astonishing 104 mm of rain, following the nearly 150 mm of rainfall just a few days earlier. The storms in the area then organised into a squall line later in the evening and raced eastwards into the RRV. Frequent lightning, strong winds and drenching rains were the main stories. As much as 30 mm fell in southern parts of Winnipeg during the entire event.

     A gorgeous thunderstorm moved into Winnipeg from the west on the evening of June 26 as seen in the photo. It fizzled out as it entered the city and as a result only light showers fell with minimal accumulations.






     And finally, I would like to wish all my fellow canadians a very wonderful Canada Day!