North Battleford, Sask., was transformed into a winter-like scene following an intense hailstorm Thursday afternoon. (Clarence Briand) A local state of emergency was declared in North Battleford, Sask., on Thursday after an intense hailstorm, which led to flooding in some parts of the city.

"Flooding has been reported in numerous homes east of the downtown," city officials said Thursday in news release. "Various streets and intersections throughout the city are also experiencing flooding."

"Over 100 and maybe as many as 200 homes … were impacted in one way or another," Ian Hamilton, the mayor of North Battleford, told CBC News on Thursday afternoon. "We're compiling the information as to people who are displaced."

Later, officials said they had confirmed that 97 homes were flooded, most of them east of the downtown core.

Command centre set up

Hamilton said officials opened a command centre to co-ordinate the city's response to the emergency conditions. One of its roles will be to help people forced from their homes find a place to stay.

"There's some basement suites and apartment complexes that were certainly impacted," Hamilton said. "And we do have to work with emergency services to ensure their accommodation."

Several streets in North Battleford were flooded following the storm. (Tim Jackson)The summer storm pounded North Battleford around 1:30 p.m. CST, depositing enough hailstones to leave a winter-like layer of ice on the streets.

"We have never seen a storm of such intensity in 64 years of living on the Prairies," Clarence Briand told CBC News shortly after taking pictures of the aftermath.

"It looked like everything just turned white again," said Tim Jackson, another resident caught in the storm. "People were slipping and sliding [on the roads]."

Jackson said many drivers simply pulled off to the side of the road to wait out the storm.

A spokesman for the city said water was one metre deep in some spots and was rushing down streets, flooding some roads and intersections.

The storm continued a summer of severe weather that has plagued Saskatchewan communities, still recovering from floods, tornadoes and a prolonged rainy period in the early part of the season.

Environment Canada was tracking a thunderstorm in the area at the time and said it was producing loonie-size hail. Weather warnings were issued for several Saskatchewan areas.

"This is very typical, with hot weather," Natasha Ramsahai, the CBC News meteorologist, said Thursday. "We're talking daytime heating and thunderstorms."

Ramsahai said many people in Saskatchewan may think this summer's weather has been more intense, but this may be a matter of perception.

"We do think that people are noticing these things more," she said.

She added that timing and location are crucial. If a storm develops overhead, people will be directly affected and remember it. A similar storm 10 or 20 kilometres away would not make a lasting impression.

Drivers had to contend with near whiteout conditions from the intense hail. (Tim Jackson)"If the storm was 10 kilometres away from your house, you would have thought it was a nice year," she said.

The peak time for intense storms is July and August, when the summer sun can produce the daytime heat associated with thunderstorms.

A special Friday morning meeting of North Battleford's city council was planned to officially request disaster assistance from the province. The meeting was scheduled for 8 a.m. CST.

It was also expected that the provincial minister for public safety would tour the city, sometime on Friday.

North Battleford is a city of about 13,000, 140 kilometres northwest of Saskatoon.People in North Battleford were caught in a hailstorm for about 30 minutes. (Clarence Briand)