On July 14, Environment Canada issued a severe thunderstorm watch for New Brunswick — which means atmospheric conditions are favourable for the development of thunderstorms.
The watch mentioned that there was a tornado risk associated with the potential conditions.
Neither severe thunderstorms nor a tornado materialized, but a social media storm ensued leading to the spread of misinformation, unreliable images and a lot of panic.
Extreme weather, natural disasters and health emergencies are prime events for attracting misinformation, according to Sander van der Linden, a psychology professor at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and an expert in misinformation.
“It’s real time,” he said. “There’s urgency. There’s uncertainty. So people are going to try to fill in the void.”
An Environment Canada “watch” is not the same as a “warning.” A watch advises people to get ready for potential severe weather, while a warning tells people to act immediately as severe weather is either happening or will happen.
Jill Maepea, a Fredericton-based Environment Canada meteorologist, told CBC News on the day that the severe thunderstorm watch was issued that the risk of a tornado was low.
On July 14, severe thunderstorm watches were issued for the entire province. The watches listed a tornado risk. (Environment and Climate Change Canada)
Despite this, people on social media were already worked up about a potential severe thunderstorm prior to the watch from Environment Canada with Facebook pages posting,
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