Flooding from severe storms closes Whitemud Drive in west Edmonton – Edmonton

An extension of Whitemud Drive closed in west Edmonton after a severe storm dumped massive amounts of rain Saturday night, prompting many 911 calls.

Geysers of water were seen shooting from wells along the highway west of Edmonton, where several underpasses were flooded.

The 170th Street underpass turned into a lake, with firefighters deployed to help several people stranded on the side of the embankment between the northbound and southbound overpass bridges.

Vehicular traffic was forced to turn back and forth on the one-way lanes of the highway and even the side ramps were impassable at points.

Three vehicles were stuck at the eastbound intersection of Route 170, where a sinkhole in the road collected about two feet of water.

Around 10:30 p.m., Edmonton police said all of Whitemud was closed between 156th Street and 178th Street.

Police said the storm and the ensuing runoff caused significant problems on roads across Edmonton, so all drivers were advised not to travel unless necessary.

Several other streets around the city were also flooded and emergency crews were dispatched to assist motorists, including on Yellowhead Trail from 82 Street to 156 Street, Jasper Avenue from 82 Street to 92 Street and 97 Street where it sits under an old railroad bridge between 104th and 105th Streets.

The City of Edmonton closed Groat Road north from the River Valley Road interchange at 107 Avenue due to flood that turned the ravine into a river.

At midnight, Edmonton Transit Service said it was experiencing delays across the city due to the weather.

Around 1 a.m. Sunday, the city said there was also flooding on Connors Street, under the 98 Avenue Bridge, so motorists were asked to avoid that area.

The fast-moving storm forced people at KDays to shelter inside the Expo Center and forced Post Malone’s concert at Commonwealth Stadium to end early.

Concertgoers took shelter inside the field as strong winds and sideways rain battered the stadium.

Edmonton police asked people to also avoid the area around Commonwealth Stadium and the Expo Centre, including 112 Avenue from Wayne Gretzky Drive to 97 Street, to allow people to leave safely.

911 dispatch began experiencing what police said was an “extremely high volume” due to the storm, which EPS said could affect response and wait times.

For non-emergency matters, people were asked to contact the appropriate non-emergency resources in order to keep 911 lines available for those in urgent need.

The EPS non-emergency line is 780-423-4567 or #377 within the city.

The storm that swept through Edmonton was one of several waves of storm systems.

In issuing weather warnings, the agency said the dangerous storm was capable of producing damaging winds, ping-pong ball-sized hail and heavy rain.

The storm cell, which stretched from Barrhead in the north to Leduc in the south, was moving east at 45 km/h and warnings said there was a risk of tornadoes.

Earlier in the evening around 7 p.m., a tornado warning was issued west of Edmonton in Yellowhead County near Peers and Niton Junction.

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.