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thank you for the news, 7 `" c# A9 f) B3 {4 B5 z% ei have some news from toronto too... 9 _ i1 h6 f: U5 p$ \+ x% q& ` ! D( E& M/ b/ N. y4 O/ y) ~# Atoronto was hit by two tornado yesterday. Some place in toronto even 水浸!!!.! ?( }% q4 n& _2 p
these are pictures from other sites, taken yesterday.; m" I' F3 j i http://www.thestar.com/images/thestar/img/050819_traffic_storm_250.jpg4 o% b4 C9 c: J
1 F" C5 s$ B( B) | http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20050819/160_tornado_rains_050819.jpg/ i: G3 E3 F$ p: l. C% S5 p1 u
- P$ y& U g) n6 P6 Phttp://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20050819/160_toronto_storm_050819.jpg 3 Z5 B2 q1 z6 @6 a7 ?1 G: T. R" E9 r5 i' j http://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20050819/160_toronto_flood_050819.jpg ! `8 J, W. a( t8 O 4 O4 p; c3 q/ j9 _southwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado d( t$ e6 G6 k( A ; f% C2 H+ y: H7 [5 Q4 |/ |* P, " a8 s& [; ]$ E" U& c q% S1 }( A0 X9 F4 y6 Lthe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. " D+ c6 V, m, ]% V! p# z6 e% {) E$ }+ [2 |' C
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***********************************************************) W2 o$ Q7 a7 z& ^8 P+ k Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado $ V* i/ }/ M$ E8 e4 Vby: PAUL CHOI 8 |: H2 G8 B" [& d8 q
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET s Q6 D& k, H. ]- |0 D V / H3 E0 K" h! Z: Z) Z' l! k : x X# k3 Z. JTORONTO (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.9 H$ q7 n) I$ c9 W$ Y% [
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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.5 @$ b& g9 S) t9 D
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It 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.9 F6 z p5 L# w' Z
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"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." ) \( v6 ?4 Q( i4 R4 Q 6 f, K5 {/ G2 iA 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. ' h! j6 E( V) C" B 6 P; w7 y$ S3 {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. ( n$ G% n) ^7 ^& n+ r' l - ^6 E8 o/ q) C& {) C; m. V"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.") T2 d w5 z. M1 N% k9 w
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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 ? S: W v# g1 ?5 E; C/ j% r, a. qAmidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. - P! J& _# t/ q1 ~6 i0 O9 E" V( p$ b( ]0 D
"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." 6 _" M+ X! E) f8 ? ' P; j6 U" P9 f' n; ~+ R7 y/ uFergus resident Klaus Doerig and his wife, Judy, were at home when the skies turned menacingly grey and tree limbs began flying past their window. j4 L8 ^7 X2 e) D5 f) [8 w4 ]# P" v' \. f( J* H) G7 {
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.3 Q' R% o& k- R; m
, Q; a4 t% z, Y) R7 L K) q. K% g"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"9 r$ S% t; i: R" H+ y4 Y
7 Q7 F' `* M$ W2 L( H' C J2 ^! mOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.6 x6 r0 y$ }' k3 `
! ^" x$ M' d+ u0 x6 MAided 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. % C1 [5 S& s/ Z; o& z$ b 0 z7 o2 y7 J' t( Y R$ sCoulson 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. 9 z' ?9 J" L K n( g' [6 A) A( H8 T+ @"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. $ U1 G# U" f- K$ C0 Y; N 6 J# h0 Y/ _/ O) ?+ S: tDue 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. & W: {* C9 G0 G% L% n/ {8 W& @
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The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. ; E5 _) p/ ]- U) r( s
; }. V, B7 Q/ G2 z" P7 nMeanwhile 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. 6 p7 w/ h+ e0 z7 I7 K5 Y
5 R, P( c5 A, l$ N, I: _5 XDuring 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. 3 G e! ^! F' u- {4 ?4 v
, N3 c- Q) r% E1 A' T3 YBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. , k% H8 D2 s1 g
3 ~" E% [4 T4 ~, N"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. 8 ?# Q: h& q( O
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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.6 T Q! h/ l3 o6 H, `; h4 T3 R/ W