VIDEO: Saanich tornado sends trampoline airborne on Thursday

CHEK

It started off as a normal, peaceful day on McBriar Avenue in Saanich on Thursday until a storm suddenly blew in.

What happened next was not something you see every day: a trampoline went airborne amid a tornado.

“All of a sudden I look out and I see some sand moving around and I was like okay that’s a little weird. And then all of a sudden it just like went up and it was this huge giant tornado-like shape and then I look over and I see a trampoline flying. Ran outside, saw it all the way up the road to the top and couldn’t believe my eyes,” said witness Erin Fletcher.

Winds launched a trampoline more than six metres (20 feet) in the air. Somehow, the flying trampoline didn’t cause any injuries or damage.

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, based on the footage, it appears a “weak, short-lived EF-0 tornado” touched down at 12:18 p.m. PT. 

An EF-0 tornado is the weakest possible tornado, with winds ranging between 90 kilometres an hour to 130 km/h.

“[It was] pretty scary because I was worried about my neighbours because they have two young kids, so I was making sure they weren’t outside at the time which they happened to be. And making sure they were okay was my first priority,” said Fletcher.

A metal sign from a baseball diamond nearly 500 metres from Fletcher’s house ended up in her backyard.

“This doesn’t happen here. This is insane.” Fletcher said.

Heavy bouts of rainfall came crashing down following the wind storm. A dark, wet and windy afternoon that residents on McBriar Avenue won’t soon forget.

Ben NesbitBen Nesbit

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