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Tornado!
Posted 7/31/2012 3:57:00 AM

It was like nothing I had ever seen before, the clouds seemed to be rolled up and they had this odd green color.  It was a little bit frightening, and as neighbors watched, we knew it might be a good idea to take cover, but no one wanted to miss what might happen next.  When it was over, I was assigned to go to the Evergreen Mobile Home Park.  I had never seen such devastation, except on T.V.  How could such a thing happen here?  It had never happened before.  Big trucks were on their sides.   Tree trunks were twisted off like sticks of celery, and the mobile homes were in shreds.  I was struck by the sea of pink before me.  Insulation covered the wreckage.  Homes were flattened.  There were some pipes protruding, reminders of where people had lived.  And then a vehicle arrived pulling a little flat trailer.  As it was opened, I saw, for the very first time, body bags.  My thoughts turned from the destroyed homes to the lives that would have to be rebuilt.  As I made some calls yesterday, a person at Evergreen told me there would be no commemoration today, most just wanted to forget.  I can respect that, but for others, we just wanted you to know we have not forgotten.  Please add your thoughts, below.

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Posted By: Bob Layton  

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  1. Bob $ posted on 07/31/2012 10:07 AM
    I didn't live in Edmonton at that time,..but brought a brother from Winnipeg on a trip and we toured parts of the devastation on the south side industrial park. There I saw a van literally torn open "sideways" and wrapped around a telephone pole on the drivers side,..NO driver. Unbelievable strength! Unspeakable devastation everywhere,..tornados are very unforgiving and not choosy about who or what they take.
    My heartfelt condolences to the survivors families and the many years of reminders each strong wind or dark sky must bring back to their memories.
  2. AlM_4887 posted on 07/31/2012 06:25 PM
    I drove in that afternoon from Drayton Valley and picked up a plane ticket at a travel agent downtown for a flight to Regina (before we could do all of this online!). In town, 930 CJCA reported a severe weather warning and funnel clouds near Nisku, but no mention of a Tornado Watch/Warning at that point in time. It was raining so hard the street curbs were full to the brim and I was drenched to the bone on exiting my car. My flight from the Muni on a CP Air 737 was delayed for 25 minutes to get the water off the runway. I didn't know that I had crossed paths with the Tornado until I heard it on the news in Regina on Saturday morning. I had family in Edmonton whom I couldn't contact on overloaded phone lines. They were safe, but my heart still goes out to those who lost friends and family. I recall with pride the stories of heroism and community pulling together, and with distain the stories of looting and insurance fraud. Crisis bares our best and worst.
  3. David W. Lincoln posted on 08/01/2012 11:13 AM
    My Mom flew back to Edmonton the day before the Tornado, and she noticed that the clouds in the skies looked very different. When a large tree the following day, fell, but not on the townhouse (and this was before the Tornado hit) - more than hunches communicated something was up, and it wasn't going to be pretty.
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