Example of the damage caused by Wednesday's extreme wind in Taber (Taber Fire Department on Facebook)

By Justin Goulet

Many Alberta communities set all-time records for wind speed Wednesday

Jan 14, 2021 | 7:34 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Many Albertans had to hold on to their hats Wednesday.

A strong Alberta Clipper low pressure system raced across the province on January 13. The system brought with it damaging wind gusts to much of the southern and central parts of Alberta.

According to Environment Canada, a personal weather station in Taber reported a peak gust of 145 km/h. Damages were reported across the town and surrounding area.

Power outages were noted in many communities, including Lethbridge and Medicine Hat. Environment Canada also reported that many semi-trucks tipped over on provincial highways due to the strong gusts.

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For reference, the gusts recorded in the Taber area would have registered at EF-1 on the Enhanced Fujita scale used to rate tornado damage.

In addition to the wind, some snow fell in various parts of the province with blizzard conditions reported in Lloydminster and regions to the south near the border of Saskatchewan.

Freezing rain fell as well across east-central Alberta in the morning hours. This created slick conditions, with heavy snow reported for areas north of Highway 16.

Below is a list of communities that set all-time January records for peak wind gusts.

• Barnwell: 137 km/h
• Onefour: 122 km/h
• Blood Tribe: 119 km/h
• Fincastle: 115 km/h
• Bow Island: 113 km/h (tied all-time record)
• Bellshill: 113 km/h
• Milk River: 111 km/h
• Coronation: 111 km/h
• Consort: 111 km/h

Other areas of note, although they did not set all-time records for January, were Lethbridge (peak gusts of 120 km/h), Medicine Hat (109 km/h), Raymond (106 km/h), Claresholm (104 km/h), Brocket (102 km/h) and Pincher Creek (102 km/h).

A full listing of peak wind gusts recorded by Environment Canada can be seen here.