'A rare event:' 40-70 mm of rainfall expected in areas of southwest Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan, particularly the southwest, is about to be hit by a significant dump of rain. 

A low-pressure storm system over Montana is expected to move north into the province by Tuesday afternoon, although the majority of areas in the line of the storm will see rain by the evening. 

Environment and Climate Change Canada tells CBC that southwest Saskatchewan can expect between 40 and 70 millimetres of rain in and around Maple Creek, Swift Current, Leader and Kindersley. Saskatoon will also see a good chunk of rain. And, due to thunderstorms, some areas can expect pockets of rainfall to exceed 90 or even 100 millimetres.    

"It's going to be quite a rare event," said Stephen Berg, meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.  

"This is certainly looking like a severe event in terms of rainfall in some places. [We] might have some localized flooding in places that have harder ground, more impermeable surfaces. If it's an urban area, that might be a big concern for some overland flooding there."

Hydroplaning is a risk due to surface water on the roads, Berg said. He advises people to not drive in those areas as there's a big risk of sliding off the road. 

"Visibility might be quite reduced, maybe to as much as a half a mile. So that might also pose a major issue in terms of seeing the road ahead of you," Berg said.

The meteorologist predicts the next few days will be especially difficult for farmers.

"With the harvest ongoing, it might be a bit of a problem for farmers in those areas getting the crops out of the ground," he said.

Regina might avoid the heaviest precipitation, with current projections sitting between 10 and 25 millimetres of rainfall. However, a thunderstorm may increase that, according to Berg.

The weather system is expected to last from Tuesday to Thursday. Berg said the rain swath will then move toward the northeast corner of the province on Friday.