Tornado hits near Drayton Valley as storms rip through central and northwest Alberta

Storm chasers spotted a tornado west of Drayton Valley on Wednesday evening.

Storm chasers spotted a tornado west of Drayton Valley around 5 p.m. Wednesday.

There are no initial damage reports and the tornado lifted shortly after touching down.

• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App

The threat of another tornado exists in areas west of Edmonton through the early evening hours as a tornado watch issued by Environment & Climate Change Canada remains in effect.

The watch includes areas from Edson/Drayton Valley and Rimbey northeast through Whitecourt and Barrhead areas.

It’s important to note that the vast majority of that region will not see a tornado. However, anyone in the watch region should be on alert for severe storms and have a plan in place to find safe shelter if one of those storms develops near you.

If a tornado does develop, an Alberta Emergency alert will be sent out to mobile phones in the affected area.

• Sign up for breaking news alerts from CTV News Edmonton, right at your fingertips

Most of central and northern Alberta remain under a severe thunderstorm watch, including the city of Edmonton and surrounding areas.

A few thunderstorms have prompted warnings in parts of central and north western Alberta as well – check with the Environment & Climate Change Canada app or website for the latest on those.

Reminder - a watch means “potential” for storms. A warning means the severe weather has developed or is imminent.

All of the severe thunderstorms avoided Edmonton and area through the late afternoon hours.

It’s still possible for a new thunderstorm to develop and push through parts of the region before the evening is done. However, most of the city will likely miss out on storms tonight.