Two tornadoes touch down in rare event for New Brunswick

Two tornadoes touched down in central New Brunswick during a storm on Friday, as confirmed by the Ontario-based research group, Western University’s Northern Tornadoes Project. Dave Sills, the executive director of the project, stated that the tornadoes occurred in the Harvey and Sheffield areas around 5 p.m. These tornadoes are now recorded as the latest tornadoes of the year for the province.

Sills emphasized that even one tornado at this time of year is considered a rare event, not just for New Brunswick but for all of Canada. The previous record for a late-season tornado in New Brunswick was set in 1965 when a tornado hit the Grand Falls area on September 21st. However, with the recent tornadoes occurring on November 1st, this new record shatters the old one.

The tornadoes have been classified as EF-0, which is the lowest severity level on the tornado scale. Sills mentioned that a part of his research team will be visiting New Brunswick on Tuesday to assess the damage, determine the tornado track, and finalize the rating. The estimated wind speeds of the Harvey tornado reached up to 115 km/h, falling within the range of EF-0 tornadoes which typically have wind speeds between 90 and 130 km/h.

According to Sills, the Northern Tornadoes Project became aware of the Harvey tornado through an on-the-ground report from a local storm spotter who witnessed the tornado. Radar data indicated a brief tornado in the Harvey area and a longer track of rotation moving towards the Sheffield area. Video footage from someone in Sheffield confirmed the touchdown of a second tornado.

Sills noted that the tornado events in New Brunswick have contributed to an unusually long tornado season in Canada this year. He attributed this trend to climate change, suggesting that the warming climate may be lengthening the tornado season. The first tornado of the year was reported on March 16, with the latest occurring on November 1, making it an exceptionally long tornado season compared to previous years.

The storms hit New Brunswick just a day after the province broke its heat record on Halloween. Sills encouraged individuals who experienced tornado damage to report it on the Northern Tornadoes Project website. This information will aid in the research and analysis of tornado occurrences in the region.