Saturday’s dust storm continues to wreak havoc on southern Alberta homes. Winds gusting up to 100 kilometres an hour blew dust and dirt from surrounding fields into Standoff houses.
“There was extensive damage from dust blowing into the homes and there was reports of difficulty breathing,” said Rick Tailfeathers, Communications Director for the Blood Tribe.
But it didn’t end there. The Canadian Red Cross was called in Saturday night around 7 o’clock when some residents lost power.
“There were seven or eight families that evacuated, many of them found their own lodging and food for the evening,” said Natasha Fairweather, Canadian Red Cross. “Our volunteers assisted four families, total 20 individuals.”
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The Blood Tribe said it’s been working with farmers in the area to reseed the fields that were scorched in last falls grass fire. But the wind and dry conditions are eroding the soil, making regrowth a slow process.
“Much of the land surrounding the area that was affected had been seeded five to eight days ago and whether or not it has taken seed or not, they’re going to determine that tomorrow,” added Tailfeathers. “There were some attempts to try and seed it early so it would be able to contain the soil.”
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And later Monday afternoon, a light snowstorm in the Standoff area gave residents a break from the dust. From one extreme to the other, southern Albertans are hoping this much needed moisture will help keep the dust down and help with regrowth of seeded fields.
Monday afternoon, the Red Cross said the families who were evacuated have returned to their homes in Standoff.
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