'Looks almost like a meteor crash': Central Alberta tornado estimated among Alberta's strongest

A Canada Day tornado that tore through parts of central Alberta is estimated to be one of the strongest in the province's history.

Experts have now categorized the tornado as an EF4 -- something Alberta hasn't seen in 36 years.

Just north of Carstairs on Tuesday night, the cleanup was still very much underway.

Piles of debris that were thrown all across properties are everywhere in this part of Mountain View County.

On Tuesday, Jared Wesley was surveying the damage to his mother's property.

There were two homes -- one where his mom lived and the other rigged and ready to be moved to a foundation -- but now, there's nothing but scraps of wood and metal.

"It's total destruction. I don't think there's another way to describe it. Everything is gone," Wesley said.

Experts have now categorized the Canada Day tornado in central Alberta as an EF4 -- something the province hasn't seen in 36 years.

A team of experts says the tornado had wind speeds of up to 275 kilometres an hour.

Its power was comparable to the Edmonton tornado in 1987 that killed 27 people and injured hundreds more.

Fortunately, the comparison stops there.

One person suffered only minor injuries in the recent storm.

Twelve homes were damaged and three were destroyed.

"Something that almost looks apocalyptic, right? It looks almost like a meteor crash through the area, right?" said Connell Miller with the Northern Tornadoes Project.

Alberta averages 15 tornadoes a year.

Already this year, there have been 13.

"We don't know what's going to happen for the rest of the summer. We can't forecast to that scale about what's going to happen with severe weather or tornadoes," said Terri Lang, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Experts have now categorized the Canada Day tornado in central Alberta as an EF4 -- something the province hasn't seen in 36 years.

Saturday's storm levelled homes, tossed vehicles into the air and splintered large trees.

Its path was 15 kilometres long and more than 600 metres wide.

"I guess, at the end of the day, it's just stuff. You can always get more stuff," Wesley said.

"I'm just glad we didn't lose any human life this time."

One silver lining out of all this, Wesley says, has been an outpouring of community support in the form of donations and cleanup efforts.

"We've had hundreds of people out here helping us. It's heartwarming. Almost emotionally overwhelming. There's just a lot of good people out here," Wesley said.

Provincial ministers have pledged to stop by the area this week, though government officials say it's too early to know when or if there will be financial help for those impacted.

Wesley has set up an online fundraiser to help his mother.