Year in review: Alberta's biggest weather events of 2024

A year of wild and costly weather events From the frigid cold to the punishing hail, we take a look back at some of the province's biggest weather stories.

From a polar vortex in January to golf in November, 2024 proved to be quite the weather rollercoaster ride for Albertans.

CTV Calgary is taking a walk down memory lane, highlighting some of the most significant weather stories of the year.

January deep freeze

The start of 2024 had the province locked in the icy grip of a stubborn Arctic air mass.

In mid-January, temperatures plunged into the minus 30s and 40s, blanketing Alberta in extreme cold warnings.

The frigid temperatures plus snowfall created havoc on the roads and at the Calgary International Airport, where dozens of flights were cancelled because de-icing fluid didn't work.

The extreme cold also put pressure on the energy grid and an unprecedented emergency alert was issued Albertans to reduce their energy consumption.

"We were razor close to having to go to rotating outages," said Leif Sollid, manager of communications with Alberta Electric System Operator at the time.

"We were projecting a 100-200 megawatt shortfall and our backup reserves which would have put us into rotating outages. Albertans stepped forward. They cut their power within seconds and minutes (of the alert) and that avoided outages."

The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) says 70 per cent of claims made during the deep freeze were personal property claims.

May's amazing aurora

While the aurora is primarily influenced by factors in space, we can credit the prime weather conditions in May for setting the stage for a spectacular celestial event.

A powerful geomagnetic storm produced a vivid aurora that was visible across the northern hemisphere, extending to latitudes as far south as Alabama.

With the sun approaching its solar maximum, 2024 was packed with opportunities to witness the northern lights with the naked eye in Alberta, but the May event was particularly special as it was the first G5 storm (the strongest geomagnetic storm category) to make contact with the Earth's magnetic field in decades.

Jasper wildfires

Alberta is no stranger to heat in the summer, but the combination of high temperatures, strong winds, low precipitation and lightning conspired to ignite several fires in Jasper National Park.

Those intense wildifres forced and evacuation order of the entire park on July 22 and, by July 24, the flames reached the Jasper townsite.

About one-third of the buildings in the community were destroyed.

Firefighters from dozens of communities came to Jasper to battle the flames and Premier Danielle Smith fought back tears when talking about the damage.

"To the residents, we will recover from this," she said.

"To the men and women on the frontline and to those in Alberta and around the world who have experienced the magic of Jasper, the magic is not lost and it never will be."

Months later, the town continues to rebuild from the Jasper wildfire with $880 million in insured damages.

August hailstorm

A few weeks later, a supercell storm would pummel Calgary with massive hail stones.

Researchers from Western University's Northern Hail Project estimate up to 36,000 homes may have been impacted along with thousands of cars.

"Unlike tornadoes, hail swaths are quite big," said Julian Brimelow, executive director of the Northern Hail Project.

"So, this particular storm, the hail swath was about 12 kilometres wide and stretched for 120 kilometers, and the northern Calgary got hit."

The storm caused so much damage at the Calgary International Airport, that one of its concourses needed to be closed down.

Sixteen of WestJet's aircraft were damaged, impacting travel for more than 20,000 customers.

The IBC says the storm caused an estimated $2.8 billion in insured damage, making it the second costliest natural disaster in Canadian history.

Golf in November

Fall was a lot more settled for Alberta with above seasonal temperatures.

In fact, it was warm enough in early November for Calgary's Shaganappi and Maple Ridge golf courses to book tee times with temperatures reaching the mid-teens.

https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-golf-courses-open-this-weekend-amid-warm-november-weather-1.7099300

What's in store for 2025

Looking ahead to the new year, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) is forecasting a more seasonal start for Western Canada when it comes to temperatures.

"In terms of precipitation, again even harder yet to give a reliable forecast with a weak La Nina pattern setting up, the expectation is for generally more precipitation and cooler conditions in the west in general," said ECCC spokesperson Jennifer Smith.

ECCC says 2024 shattered records as Canada's most expensive year for weather disasters.