UDPATE: Environment Canada ended the severe thunderstorm watch for the Ottawa area late Wednesday afternoon.
Environment Canada issued a severe thunderstorm watch for Ottawa on Wednesday as thunderstorms that have affected the majority of southern Ontario make their way into the area.
The weather agency says conditions are favourable for severe thunderstorms to develop in the area that may be “capable of producing strong wind gusts, large hail and heavy rain.”
Should the storms develop, they will begin this afternoon and are believed to possibly persist into this evening.
Environment Canada says the main threats of such a thunderstorm are wind gusts up to 100 kilometres per hour and up to two centimetres of hail.
The weather agency also says the threat of an isolated tornado is also possible.
“Strong wind gusts can toss loose objects, damage weak buildings, break branches off trees and overturn large vehicles,” it wrote in a release. “Remember, severe thunderstorms can produce tornadoes. Lightning kills and injures Canadians every year. Remember, when thunder roars, go indoors.”
Environment Canada says these watches are issued when conditions are favourable for the development of thunderstorms that have the possibility to produce conditions that could be dangerous for residents such as large hail, damaging winds and torrential rainfall.