Why has it been so windy this spring? That is a common question being asked in Southern Manitoba.
    
Meteorologist Natalie Hasell with Environment Canada says there are two reasons, the first has to do with the fact we're at the tail end of a La Nina event. This phenomenon has to do with water temperatures and pressure patterns over the pacific. Hasell says with a La Nina, there is a shift in the track of low pressure systems and they tend to track very close to or even through Southern Manitoba. And with low pressure systems, there are winds associated with them and if they are deep low pressure systems, the winds will be strong. Hasell adds we've seen that time and time again this spring.
    
A second reason why it's been so windy this spring is because of all the thunderstorms we've had. She says in this case we see very strong virgo development clouds and associated with these clouds are very strong down drafts or down bursts. Hasell notes "you have air that's moving up to build the storm and as the storm matures, we start to see air flowing down with the precipitation." She adds there are also the winds coming out of the cloud itself to this downdraft idea and those are the straight line wind scenarios." Hasell says often straight line winds can be quite strong. For example in late May there was a system of thunderstorms that rolled through which produced large hail and strong downdraft, downburst winds. In fact, in Winnipeg there were wind gusts of 91 km/h during that storm.
    
Hasell says it could very well be that this spring has been much more windy than years past, though Environment Canada doesn't keep stats to prove that. As for how much longer this trend will continue, Hasell says the La Nina is expected to taper off by the end of June. She notes that should change the track the low pressure system follows, "hopefully to further away from Manitoba." However, she's quick to add it's thunderstorm season in Manitoba, and will be for several months. With Environment Canada forecasting above normal temperatures and above normal precipitation this summer, that could be the catalysts for severe thunderstorms, which as Hasell mentioned often produce strong winds.