+ k0 f+ n* q7 f" R' pthe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. ( g: P/ }& L _% _, H3 l' b M' |5 \6 [- K+ `5 P
9 J6 k4 d4 [. O1 C4 S8 N6 r
*********************************************************** / Q. q3 o! K3 z5 c( W5 mResidents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado 5 @, o ?! h6 l) Nby: PAUL CHOI A- S; {' O6 Z( J3 }$ B( g
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET' X0 `0 A' ]7 M0 `
2 X; c( G' n; n0 \6 x" `, k: ~! W) [ . h! O; ~' X6 Y* ]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.# @; S/ U6 v, C7 o
! A0 ~% y, @% K$ AThe 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.3 t; j1 \% J0 y
% l3 H: c; w' Q: A. N5 WIt 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. ) b1 ]0 H" P; \" l. u8 B' Y+ t. u+ t* X
"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.": i; g" b6 p& p& F9 X# q/ ]7 y9 b
. m3 t5 A. D' M- D9 jA 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. ( N s! _# J# D$ w' u9 G 8 [3 ?+ A; i9 ZElsewhere 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.' z8 {! E! ~+ e# M$ n
& m- X9 F+ E [/ u5 O& C
"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." * X/ b: ]) F2 }% D9 ~: d# B$ p: |' l- }8 a$ c5 P
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.' [5 j" F' }; d9 b, ^
* V Q1 A( p( n8 m
Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. 8 I0 D E" T0 c/ W# N6 u; m7 s4 t, w- _ i8 |4 c) @: O
"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.". o( |( p4 c! S' R9 Q
; {5 \- v P# N! _2 ~8 a3 h
Fergus resident Klaus Doerig and his wife, Judy, were at home when the skies turned menacingly grey and tree limbs began flying past their window.! G6 e; }$ ?6 D, K, B2 r/ k+ V
# @# a3 N% t s1 S- B
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., e# X) V% ~1 x! {5 s
) f: R, c. n! E) {+ K; ^9 v, H9 _5 ]"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"3 S% J0 Z7 M& |4 |" Z
9 [: @+ k3 T8 O6 [* q" F% D4 G9 d
Officials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes. 2 Z# Q1 y. l) i* |, B , Z1 t) |' G) n/ }' gAided 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.9 w( m5 C+ I+ Q/ B
0 u: [7 I3 ~2 u1 w$ y4 W
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., f9 J, R! \ w8 a) t. o
' c/ F* c2 [% @7 i1 A
"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. ! G2 Y# i) G( C( d- b0 y2 U% T' m% t$ x4 z# @! z
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. " B$ Z# D, x2 P) @
( F B3 J" |. b' U" i. SThe majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. ! U: c7 C3 K# E# R9 @ l5 F
/ T# Q9 z, y' {3 I! n. }+ O
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. + T; r) Z2 p; \: V( \+ @+ M) Y" ]3 X' p" [2 R G. r
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. O3 M7 N8 M: p% N5 r8 o% p/ V" {6 ^% A
But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. : x. ~" t3 C8 P2 c+ J: N+ e; I" i4 I
"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. & I& r# ^8 w* q/ Z. v
% H( X' J0 ] @& |7 K# T3 v
"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.7 G) t5 {: P& K6 ?% d: P
2 s0 F$ ?* H& _
********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM