$ R/ v1 L4 S. B! x6 R0 D4 qsouthwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado / i& ]2 _* e+ R# j4 v- E, J3 _ 7 E) o+ J' N9 X; k: m$ ~- D,! c- E7 f$ }4 v# L( N
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the southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. }0 O! ]+ Q1 S# H( m: N7 t! k. R2 n
$ j2 I2 g! O+ n7 `) Q$ N/ |: N***********************************************************- L( M& N6 |% e Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado & o$ E3 l# b& R: ]2 s8 M. }8 I+ L: v0 d
by: PAUL CHOI # B( g) v' g5 k$ ]' h) d1 s9 R$ kSat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET) I; X1 X7 G' o* E
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TORONTO (CP) - Residents of southwestern Ontario were picking up the pieces Saturday, and in some cases waiting for the power to be turned on, after a tornado touched down during a stampede of fierce storms a day earlier.5 ]" N, X: b7 F8 m$ j
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The severe weather, which developed due to humid and unstable air, began in Milverton, Ont., Friday afternoon and quickly gained steam as it moved east towards Fergus, a community near Conestoga Lake./ X6 s* |) D: X9 V/ C6 n6 k5 k
- [' }# y6 V7 ~- c# GIt was here, officials said, where the storm spawned a full-fledged twister close to 300 metres wide that chewed off tree limbs, downed power lines, tossed cars into ditches, and ripped into several homes and barns.6 J. p6 |. x8 N, B6 r r" i* Z. G
/ Y" D0 {3 s( ^ i"We've confirmed at this location a Fujita scale F2 tornado occurred, with winds between 180 to 240 kilometres an hour," said Environment Canada meteorologist Geoff Coulson on Saturday. "That's confirmed with the damage that we've witnessed."- A7 p- Y& R1 N1 q7 L. G
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A two-storey home in the area had its roof torn clean off and a barn behind the home was levelled to its foundation, Coulson said, all damage consistent with a severe tornado.- Z" U2 D/ \& E! X/ a0 X
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Elsewhere on a nearby highway, a wooden plank was driven into the windshield of a vehicle, another sign of extensive impact damage typically associated with a twister. 4 d8 e# |% \4 o. V; @ n9 O6 D8 u7 V6 Y X3 @"A tell-tale sign it was tornadic as opposed to just strong winds was the fact there's (mud) splatter on more than one side of a house," he said. "If it had been one wind gust there would be one side with the splatter." % Z- e% K: J( d( A+ V& ]' j4 q: U1 P* B& G$ ~: @# T
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand." v) P$ L* y, z: C/ d" d
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Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. " q* u% I& A( y7 h ' q4 J3 z! n6 h. h+ C9 o. n. O- x"That's pretty amazing given the damage we're seeing here," Coulson said. "(Many) did exactly the right thing. They got into the basement and waited the storm out down there." 4 Q3 a( M4 q! P! N % ]; |$ p+ ]: M' u! e6 QFergus resident Klaus Doerig and his wife, Judy, were at home when the skies turned menacingly grey and tree limbs began flying past their window. $ }0 w* c( O+ O/ V- Q/ i2 @! @: @9 U( d0 M
They hunkered down in the furnace room and emerged to find the roof of their home had been partially ripped off and a wall was destroyed. * u8 K+ l3 ~' h# G% E5 m+ k $ C: J4 K' Y! _% o"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"8 G% S; K: D9 i4 Q& H
, h3 `: l( @2 J( i" n. Q0 M$ _Officials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes. . I6 f9 i& b. W" f7 z2 Y7 |& j( B
Aided by an Ontario Provincial Police helicopter, Environment Canada investigators conducted full aerial surveys of the Milverton area, where the storm began, and areas further east.: b0 i1 Z: v4 W5 D: l
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Coulson said officials reported what appeared to be a one-kilometre wide swath of tree damage near Conestoga Lake. They were looking into whether it was the work of a twister.$ ^. o3 ]7 D, D9 ]
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"The big thing for us is going to be to try to link up these different reports to see if it was in fact one long-lived tornado on the ground or a series of tornadoes," he said.% d/ ]) g% {% R' a8 J5 j
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Due to the storm, nearly 4,400 people were left without power in Fergus and its surrounding areas on Saturday, said Hydro One spokeswoman Kathleen Welsh. 2 y" K9 I7 C* |7 k; ]4 l. J) \
# Q; N+ Z# B9 M" h' S3 s3 ZThe majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. 1 L3 H& S/ [# R* M6 ?9 B1 L9 ]% f
Meanwhile in Toronto, crews were cleaning up from the localized flash flooding that had paralyzed much of the city's main roadways and transit routes, drowning vehicles and leaving motorists knee-deep in water. In one extreme case, flood waters managed to wash away an entire section of road. & ]& W: S3 r' R
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During the height of the storm, around the time of the afternoon commute home, officials say the city received over 1,700 calls to emergency services. m; }+ d) I* ?! e+ Q8 \6 a7 C, R
& d' L' g3 C2 A% JBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. : j2 u: j4 x7 \1 |" D8 {( `1 m
"The city's emergency services and the staff that manage our water, transportation, hydro and forests did a fantastic job of keeping the public safe and protecting the assets of the city," said Toronto Mayor David Miller in a statement. # b8 b! {. L7 n; r$ c: n; H
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"Emergency services personnel were involved in a number of rescues, evacuations and emergency pumping operations and their work prevented serious injuries or death," he said. + U3 [1 ]% {9 k8 `! O. [# h9 m 8 g9 q {7 t' H4 I" p' j********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM