Talk about a busy morning for fire crews.

A big thunderstorm roared through the Edmonton area early Thursday, dumping rain and hail. Dozens of drivers were trapped in the flash flooding

"We've had a number of smaller fires caused by lightning strikes," says Edmonton Fire Rescue's Tim Wilson. "We've also had a number of people stranded in their vehicles due to flooding along the Whitemud," says Wilson, adding they had to do several water rescues.

"It appears most of these fires have been small. It's been single-alarm fires, single response required. We've also had a number of alarms ringing calls, which does happen in this kind of weather."

Photo courtesy: Andrew Flieder

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Video courtesy: Tracey Stewart

There are reports of marble-sized and quarter-sized hail in some areas of the city, which contributed to the rising waters.

"(Along) 20th Avenue towards 91st Street, it's flooded. And on Lakewood Road and all the side roads have half a foot of water. The hail blocked the sewer," says Manfred, who called our newsroom from Mill Woods. "And all the debris washed off the grass, the sewers are frozen shut, so half a foot to a foot of water is on the roads."

During the storm, Edmonton Fire Rescue was asking residents to stay home or head for shelter, or call 911 if they were stranded. (bd,kdr)