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A storm system swept through the Edmonton area and parts of central Alberta on Friday afternoon, bringing with it strong wind gusts, hail and heavy rain.

Environment Canada had warned there was a risk of large hail and tornadoes in the region throughout the day and into the overnight period.

The weather agency said large hail, up to tennis ball size, would be the main threat with the severe thunderstorms, with a risk of a tornado near Edmonton and to the east of the city in the afternoon and evening hours.

READ MORE: Severe summer weather causes more damage in Alberta than all other provinces: AMA

Edmonton was included in the “extreme risk” zone for Friday’s severe weather, Global Edmonton meteorologist Jesse Beyer said.

“Take all warnings and watches seriously. If severe weather is coming your way, be prepared and have a plan to keep your family safe,” Beyer said, adding outdoor events like K-Days and Taste of Edmonton could be affected.

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Late Friday afternoon, K-Days tweeted that visitors were being encouraged to “seek shelter” at the Edmonton EXPO Centre or Northlands Park. The rides were shut down because of the weather but shortly after 5:30 p.m., K-Days tweeted its rides would be running again shortly.

McKayla Chretien said she was on a ride at K-Days when the storm hit, leaving her frightened.

“It was raining… there was so much wind in my ears and I couldn’t hear anything and my dad was sending us videos of hail, so it made us more scared because I thought the hail was going to come and hit us,” she said.

The Taste of Edmonton tweeted it was closing for the evening.

In the interest of safety we are closing Taste of Edmonton for the evening. For further updates look on our website and social media. — Taste of Edmonton (@TasteOfEdm) July 20, 2018

IMPORTANT. Severe Weather Warning. Guests at Northlands are encouraged to seek shelter at the Edmonton EXPO Centre or Northlands Park #KDAYS — K-Days (@KDaysyeg) July 20, 2018

If downed trees block your roadway, please call 311. City forestry crews will work all weekend to respond. Our priorities are to ensure public safety and keep people moving. If we leave branches on your lawn, we'll be back to pick them up over the next few days. #yegwx #yeg — City of Edmonton (@CityofEdmonton) July 21, 2018

A thunderstorm watch was issued at 10:30 a.m. Friday for much of central Alberta and east-central Alberta, including Edmonton. Beyer expected the worst of the weather to appear in the mid-to-late afternoon.

At around 3:30 p.m., severe thunderstorm warnings were issued in parts of Alberta.

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At 4:27 p.m., Environment Canada issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Edmonton, St. Albert and Sherwood Park. By 5:19 p.m., that warning was downgraded to a watch.

Watch below: A severe storm rolled through the Edmonton area on Friday afternoon. Jesse Beyer had this update at 6 p.m. on Friday.

2:23 Storms sweep through central Alberta on Friday Storms sweep through central Alberta on Friday

It’s only a wee bit of rain and hail here at @630CHED 🙄 #yegwx pic.twitter.com/vZG6w9j1ci — Kirby Bourne (@Kirby_Bourne) July 20, 2018

Decent sized hail in the west end. Glad it seems to be coming to an end now. #yegwx @GlobalEdmonton pic.twitter.com/Sjl3VKpaK5 — Erin Chalmers (@ChalmersErin) July 20, 2018

Edmonton is in the "extreme risk" zone for t-storms. Potential is there for severe thunderstorms with 4-6cm hail, heavy rain, +100km/h wind AND possible tornadoes. Watch the forecast closely through the day. Info from PASPC/ECCC. #abstorm #yeg #yegwx pic.twitter.com/2WOnXKUK4C — Jesse Beyer (@jessebeyerWX) July 20, 2018

“Most areas won’t be affected, but storms that develop will be isolated and damaging,” Beyer said.

A low-pressure system was expected to form just to the south of Edmonton, which would be the focus of thunderstorms, Environment Canada said Friday morning.

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Expect the "extreme weather" to begin in central Alberta mid-afternoon and move into the Edmonton area late-afternoon and early evening. #abstorm #yegwx #yeg pic.twitter.com/BQtxaxis51 — Jesse Beyer (@jessebeyerWX) July 20, 2018

READ MORE: Rainfall warning issued for western Alberta, up to 100 mm of ‘extremely heavy’ rain expected by Sunday

Scattered severe thunderstorms were expected to develop early in the afternoon along the northern foothills. These thunderstorms were expected to move northeast throughout the afternoon and evening before weakening overnight.

The strong line of thunderstorms continues to move NE towards Cold Lake and Fort McMurray. ECCC has issued rainfall warnings for Grande Prairie, Hinton and Whitecourt. @GloblalEdmonton #abstorm pic.twitter.com/ZtQXqZIJzc — Tina Simpkin (@tsimpkin) July 21, 2018

For the most recent list of areas under weather watches and warnings, click here.

One of the best ways to track locally hazardous driving conditions is from local viewer reports. The #yegtraffic hashtag is often used by Twitter users reporting traffic issues within Edmonton.

If safe to do so, share your weather photos with us via the Global Edmonton Facebook and Twitter accounts. You can also post updates from your community using the hashtags#yegwx and #abstorm.

Want your weather on the go? Download Global News’ Skytracker weather app for iPhone, iPad and Android.

View photos from Friday’s storms in the gallery below:

A large tree branch fell on a car in the area of 113 Street and 99 Avenue when a storm blew into Edmonton on Friday afternoon. COURTESY: Collette Smith Severe weather north of St. Albert on July 20, 2018. Courtesy: James Adams Hail in Edmonton on July 20, 2018. Courtesy: Dani Rohs Severe weather in south Edmonton on July 20, 2018. Emily Mertz, Global News A viewer sent in this photo of what he says was baseball-sized hail that came down near the hamlet of Pickardville, Alta. on Friday afternoon. COURTESY: Denis St. Louis A viewer sent in this photo of a rear windshield that he says was smashed out by hail near the hamlet of Pickardville, Alta. on Friday afternoon. COURTESY: Denis St. Louis

Watch below: Here’s Mike Sobel’s Friday, July 20, 2018 morning weather forecast and severe weather update for Edmonton, Alberta and the surrounding area.

2:40 Edmonton morning weather forecast: Friday, July 20, 2018 Edmonton morning weather forecast: Friday, July 20, 2018

–With files from Phil Heidenreich, Caley Ramsay and Emily Mertz

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