A visibly shaken Gary Doer toured the community of Elie, Man., on Saturday, a day after a violent tornado flattened four homes and a flour mill and seriously damaged two other homes and a grain elevator.

Manitoba's premier said the province will provide disaster assistance to the municipality and residents of the community, about 35 kilometres west of Winnipeg.

A flour mill and truck were among the damaged sites in Elie, Man. Four homes were destroyed after a tornado hit the town.
(Winnipeg Free Press/Joe Bryksa/Canadian Press)

"There will be funds required from the province. And I just want to give the reeve our support today," he said. "Tangibly, we will be here with you."

The tornado struck the small town of 550 residents around 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Residents saw the tornado coming — eyewitnesses suggested it travelled about 5½ kilometres in the 30 to 40 minutes it was on the ground. Many hid in their basements with mattresses over them, Reeve Roland Rasmussen said.

"We need help for displaced families. Even if they rebuild, they will be displaced for one year," he said.

Doer expressed relief there were no deaths, and sympathized with "tough, traumatic circumstances" facing residents: "Homes totally destroyed, you can see how the terror … families that were in the basement as their house was ripped off from on top of them."

Winds up to 417 km/h

"It's not something you would ever expect to see in Elie. It's surreal actually," said Jennifer Collette, who wasn't home when the tornado touched down.

The tornado touches down near Elie, Man.
(Wayne Hanna/Canadian Press)

"It looks like there is some structural damage. Our house is cinderblock. It's still standing but there is some broken windows. But my husband's truck is destroyed," she said as residents began the cleanup on Saturday.

Environment Canada meteorologist Dave Carlsen suggested the tornado could have ranked F4 on the Fujita Scale, where F5 is the most violent storm. Only one per cent of tornadoes are F4 or F5, according to the Tornado Project website.

Wind speeds could have hit as much 417 km/h, based on the damage in Elie.

Despite levelled houses and vehicles tossed across fields, residents and emergency officials noted the peculiar limits of the tornado's destruction.

Just a few metres away from the devastation, an outdoor wedding tent with chairs set up outside remained untouched.

With files from the Canadian Press