Lightning strikes houses and trees, as rain and hail pound southern Alberta

A major thunderstorm pounded southern Alberta on Tuesday, with lightning strikes setting houses and trees on fire and heavy rain caused flooding in Calgary, while hail as big as golf balls pounded other communities.

Environment Canada issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the city of Calgary in the afternoon,as a major weather system swept through southern and central Alberta, bringing heavy rain and hail.

• Check out more dramatic photos of the storm here

A storm watch issued in the morning was upgraded to a warning at 3:12 p.m. The warning was ended at 4:43 p.m. for Calgary but a weather watch remained in effect and warning was still listed for some other communities for hours.

Okotoks was among communities pounded by hail.

Calgary firefighters were kept busy during the storm, responding to two house fires — one on Stranraer Place S.W. which damaged a gas line, and the other on Beny-Sur-Mer Road S.W. — both apparently caused by lightning strikes. 

Crews also had to deal with several trees that were struck by lightning in both the southwest and northwest quadrants of the city.

Several other reports of lightning strikes were called in, but crews found nothing when they arrived. 

Holly Dalgleish was sitting inside her Tuscany home, working on a yoga class plan, when the storm rolled in and a blast of lightning struck her garage.

"After I finished my plan, I closed by laptop and — kablam! — there was a huge power jolt in our house," she said. "All of the electricity went out, and I was left wide-eyed."

The strike left her garage roof smouldering and her family shaken by the "super, super loud and extremely frightening" noise.

"It was loud enough to make you really jump," she said. "The dog was up on all fours and to the other side of the house in about half a second."

Vehicles were stranded in flooded streets on Southland Drive by Braeside Drive and at Anderson Road near Macleod Trail, according to police.

Hail and localized flooding was reported across the city's southwest.

The Calgary Fire Department said there were reports of dislodged manhole covers due to the flooding and reports of flooded residential basements. 

The department responded to more than 60 emergency calls in a two-hour period, most of which were linked to the storm, according to a media release.

Thunderstorm watches or warnings were in effect for most of southern and central Alberta, as well.

As of 4:55 p.m., this is what the situation looked like (watches in yellow, warnings in red):

To report severe weather, you can email Environment Canada at storm@ec.gc.ca or tweet reports using the hashtag #ABStorm.

• SEE MORE DRAMATIC PHOTOS | Southern Alberta thunderstorm brings lightning, hail, flooding and even snow
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