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Regina Tornado Art & Heritage Legacy Project

For Immediate Release:
January 6, 2012

Art and heritage project to commemorate centennial of 1912 Regina Tornado

REGINA—The newly formed Regina Tornado Legacy Group Inc. (RTLG) is pleased to announce the Regina Tornado Art and Heritage Legacy Project, which will commemorate the 100^th anniversary of the 1912 Regina Tornado throughout 2012.

The RTLG – a newly incorporated non-profit corporation – is made up of three founding partners: the Regina Downtown Business Improvement District (RDBID), the Regina Warehouse Business Improvement District (RWBID) and the Regina Plains Museum.

“Through this project we will commission a number of works of art, including murals and sculptural installations, as well as create educational signage and a walking tour,” RWBID Executive Director Audrey Price said. “These pieces will celebrate and reflect the incredible resiliency, spirit and resolve of Regina and its people in rebuilding their shattered city nearly 100 years ago.”

The 1912 Regina Tornado struck late in the afternoon of June 30, 1912 and traveled through Wascana Lake, into the Downtown core, the Warehouse District and north eight miles into the open prairie leaving a trail of death and destruction in its wake.  Still recognized as the deadliest tornado in Canadian history, it is estimated the storm reached wind speeds of up to 420 k/hour.  The tornado, which only lasted for an estimated three to eight minutes, killed 28 people, injured more than 200, left 2,500 people homeless, and caused $1.2 million dollars in property damage.

“The Regina Tornado Art and Heritage Legacy Project will significantly enhance and support the Regina Plains Museum’s existing exhibit on the 1912 Regina Tornado, our new interactive exhibit and our virtual gallery at www.reginatornado.ca,”

Regina Plains Museum Executive Director Shari Sokochoff said.

“We will be distributing ‘call for artists submissions’ to artists throughout Saskatchewan and Canada and determining locations for these pieces in conjunction with the City of Regina in the coming months.  The finished pieces will be unveiled at a special celebration the last week of June 2012,” RDBID Executive Director Judith Veresuk said.

“We are excited to embark on this work in conjunction with the Downtown and Warehouse communities to create a legacy that future generations in Regina can experience and learn from for years to come.”

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