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thank you for the news, % a- L7 c! `! k/ J
i have some news from toronto too.../ l8 R% x# E) C: ^1 Z0 u) T, L
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*********************************************************** " _& X& P0 P* k) _Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado 9 r) O5 w" O7 g& b# h
by: PAUL CHOI 0 |6 x3 |2 h) o4 o
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET3 o5 `+ k) P% Z0 A
; S( d# ~$ X# [5 [/ S/ a+ l % i+ ^5 c- K. w4 R2 T! ETORONTO (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.4 E% i+ J) j7 k7 E- d
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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. % {: D y3 y, _! v/ S' |0 X / `" D. \3 e: N6 z0 f# A4 s! R$ r+ m" iIt 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. ( F: t% ]: ?! _) o8 x5 S7 P 7 l- T/ F4 v. Q+ ]! j"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." 5 ]5 F" `& O# v" d. u" C: Q8 k Y7 M8 Z6 q: ]% n$ M4 T
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.& K# K0 Z7 |/ z2 ~+ Z# I! h4 }
: q4 D0 h0 |! c* l. y% CElsewhere 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.3 ~; B% \' [9 T5 M, a" Z
. R2 e; D) G% a, G"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." ; _) E) W( O& h $ E! d: O/ j# M) FOn Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand. # U/ ?8 @1 g X. F8 V! _( \0 B: V) s4 w2 k% d4 ?' {
Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. 4 P1 z$ h. {: c7 K/ e, O4 Y/ y2 S5 ? . Y6 I3 ~2 T5 e/ N$ S. x7 w"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 V. l' a2 G4 n) v0 g, N6 ~! a3 g3 v1 o! F3 s2 j
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. % J& @) @0 J. h0 k 2 Z; b% X% J# H: [$ L/ ~+ Z+ BThey 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.& Y2 r, ^) L H+ b+ f
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"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?" % V: ^( }1 t- ], S2 S. I 0 Q' F0 G$ _; D8 _# }) e) AOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.% \4 `3 p1 n* u( ?/ y
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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. 2 W3 T& [+ {1 `+ N: u9 |0 L' z4 @! b2 z5 o1 M9 [
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. # h- V! `* Y ^3 n' m* r2 O 6 h7 K+ b1 `7 r+ v* |8 ]' X4 W"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.5 U! w$ d9 a4 y4 L! B5 q1 d8 E! L
* r. @2 p8 w# w( c8 C" x, mDue 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. % H4 U( p5 w) l* o7 }6 }, A( V1 V# p
The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. ; P! t( K( H0 \0 O ! W. K; D0 b0 u/ @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. " s2 ]: N9 \- v+ E$ B4 h( Q
3 }. C" ?1 Z( \: ~; h/ ]; O JDuring 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. ) U" ^$ m; V4 a- j. k ; d8 |1 q2 S* a z6 `8 a: GBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. ' M. J" d) I5 G; ~ M. r/ w4 J* x* m0 e7 ?
"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. 6 \ ~5 m6 M, V; ~# [+ d3 U z! _/ P2 g
"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.0 y+ p/ c. @) g. t9 R! L( j
5 u1 }, g+ ?+ c6 r( h |********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM