Researchers Confirm Tornadoes Hit Windsor, Leamington On Saturday Night

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A broader view of the Leamington, ON EF1 damage in the worst hit area. NTP researcher Francis Lavigne-Theriault says this does not indicate the start/end of the tornado, just its path (courtesy of the Northern Tornadoes Project / Francis Lavigne-Theriault)

A survey team from the Northern Tornados Project at the University of Western Ontario has confirmed two tornadoes touched down in Windsor and Essex County during severe thunderstorms on Saturday night, July 24th.

Researchers from the Project, which “works with Environment Canada to help verify tornadoes across the country through ground surveys, witness reports and surveillance data” say an EF0 tornado touched down at 9:20pm in Windsor, while an EF1 tornado touched down at 10:05pm in Leamington.

An NTP investigation has determined that on the evening of July 24th a tornado caused EF0 damage in Windsor and a second, later tornado caused EF1 damage in Leamington. Details below.

NTP has so far documented a total of 4 weak tornadoes that day in southern Ontario. #ONStorm pic.twitter.com/U48czkQWAD

— Northern Tornadoes Project 🇨🇦 (@westernuNTP) July 28, 2021

A graphical representation of the preliminary analysis conducted yesterday for the Windsor tornado (courtesy of the Northern Tornadoes Project / Francis Lavigne-Theriault)

With the Windsor tornado, winds reached a maximum speed of 125km/h with a path as wide as 345m. Preliminary analysis shows the tornado started in the area around Windsor Regional Hospital.

It tracked a total of 2.37 kilometres nearly parallel to Tecumseh Road East and caused tree and minor roof damage to houses.

A graphical representation of the preliminary analysis conducted yesterday for the Leamington tornado (courtesy of the Northern Tornadoes Project / Francis Lavigne-Theriault)

The Leamington tornado started in the area of Albuna Townline and Road 4E and travelled 2.48km.

Researchers say it had a path width of 190m. The maximum wind speeds were 145km/h, and the tornado caused damage to trees and a greenhouse.

Conducted a quick treefall analysis (red arrows) in the worst damage area using stitched drone images taken near Leamington, ON yesterday, making it easier to see tornadic damage and the path (magenta). @westernuNTP pic.twitter.com/fUyZEjYUjt

— Francis Lavigne-Thériault (@FLTstorm) July 28, 2021

Researchers say further investigation is pending for both tornadoes.

The Northern Tornadoes Project was founded in 2017 as a partnership between Western University and ImpactWX. It aims to “better detect tornado occurrence throughout Canada, improve severe and extreme weather understanding and prediction, mitigate against harm to people and property, and investigate future implications due to climate change.”