Drumheller and area was hit Monday with a bout of erratic weather that many will not soon forget.
It will also be a while before all the mess will be cleaned up.
The storm blasted through the valley shortly before 3 p.m. Monday afternoon, bringing heavy rain, hail and damaging winds. In the valley there was a power outage for about a half hour.
Fire Chief Bill Bachynski said despite the severity of the wind, the department was only called out twice. One was an electrical pole fire on 4th Avenue near the Passion Play Site. The second was more serious.
At about 2:45 p.m. wind gusts on Highway 56 south of Rosedale caused a north bound empty cattle liner to flip into the ditch. Badlands EMS attended and the Dalum Fire departments were on scene to direct traffic around the wreck. The driver was taken to hospital with what appeared to be minor injuries.
Keith Russell, operations manager for The Town of Drumheller, said clean up would take in the area of a week. He explains that the town crews will first work to unblock roadways and then remove any hazards. After that, it is a matter of cleaning up park areas. He said the town was lucky most of the damage was just to trees, buildings were relatively unscathed.
The Dinosaur Trail Golf and Country Club saw its share of damage and was forced to close on Tuesday. Course superintendent Mitch Davidson sent a message to members announcing that all 18 holes needed to be closed and asked if any members were able to help clean up, it would be appreciated. The aim is to open Wednesday.
It appeared Drumheller fared better than Hanna. On Monday night at about 7:30 p.m. the community declared a State of Emergency. According to the alert, 90 kilometre per hour winds damaged buildings caused power outages and trees to be uprooted. It advised residents it was dangerous to be walking or driving in the town. The alert has since been lifted.
