Southern Sask. deals with flooding after Labour Day downpour

Southern Sask. deals with flooding after Labour Day downpour

Widespread rainfall totals of 15 to 25 millimetres were expected Monday

From Prince Albert and Lloydminster all the way down to Estevan and Maple Creek, most of Saskatchewan saw a cool and rainy Labour Day, but the southern regions appeared to be hardest hit.

According to Environment Canada, a low pressure system from Montana and North and South Dakota is bringing heavy rain and thunderstorms to southern Saskatchewan Monday through Tuesday.

While rainfall amounts will vary across the province, Environment Canada meteorologist Dan Fulton said people in south and central regions could generally expect 15 to 25 millimetres of rain.

"And if you get a thunderstorm with it, you easily could see 50 millimetres,” Fulton pointed out.

Weyburn resident Nicole Zahorodin had a particularily wet drive to the grocery store Monday morning.

"From my home all the way to the Wholesale Club, Weyburn was flooded," Zahorodin said.

"As I was coming back around through the parking lot, I must have gone through the low spot in the parking lot and the water went right over the hood of my SUV."

Zahorodin said police were closing off some roads in Weyburn as a precaution.

"It was pretty dangerous out there," she said.

The City of Weyburn took to social media late Monday morning to warn people about water pooling in multiple areas.

"Residents are strongly encouraged to avoid unnecessary travel at this time. The city will continue to provide updates as the situation develops," the Facebook post said, noting that crews are actively responding.

On top of 55 millimetres of rain, areas like Last Mountain and Hazenmore also saw extreme wind gusts and hail.

Val Marie saw the strongest wind gusts at 93 kilometres per hour. The Regina area was close behind at around 90 kilometres per hour.

As of Monday morning, Environment Canada has not received any storm-related damage reports, but baseball-sized hail was reported in Kipling on Sunday.

Environment Canada said the rain should taper off after Tuesday.

Laura Gillis is a Regina-based journalist. You can reach her at laura.gillis@cbc.ca.