! A/ T j& b6 r$ c3 U* `5 w* [9 Rsouthwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado 8 n1 I: r: R( t9 F 5 F# ^1 S0 k& x. c% I' I& T2 f,: X) w8 z; H& P) C0 Q
) R! h* D0 h" f/ ^. r/ Qthe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage.3 \& x; x7 |# m3 V; ]
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***********************************************************4 v4 {6 L( o2 N" q# s7 V Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado - @% V: Z F+ J, ~by: PAUL CHOI 0 T6 M" H& U+ N' ?7 B- {* q7 x
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET 6 g3 Y1 p- L% ?' T( B ! H# P7 j& I8 Y M3 {1 E- Y5 \( X+ p
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. ; b$ O% p- p/ S: r8 T8 x4 E0 V; p( z% s
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. : k; T- O8 [% B6 X8 G" F8 z+ A / \( S) c8 u& B$ c% @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. 5 L/ U" N. L3 v7 i4 l4 J E) V1 r q- @$ o, k"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."* V" d- [& v3 f8 a3 x# d$ q6 O
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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.) t" ?3 \% Z9 n
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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.9 k* y" M; h7 ^
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"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." ) C W7 }. j4 |" n4 b% Q 1 z8 J1 ^7 n+ t! D7 {7 O% @On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.( I- P7 d8 B& I7 N3 T8 ~
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Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.. W% f& Z7 |" t/ @
* \8 o+ }5 m, {4 ^3 {) v"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." 1 O" h9 i; {. r+ _! \/ B! u0 q& q5 L+ `7 X/ F3 G, |: R0 A
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.* D% `, `. `; `
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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./ J* c& e. |7 Y/ Y5 p+ G5 \
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"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"8 e$ w; D9 G$ H( L! t( H7 |
' m9 N- v+ s" g' v; m h9 E5 C7 ~. w& nOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes. 8 n' i/ Z! [1 {4 ^( a9 }% D2 Q* K: s+ h$ p4 H4 `! b4 \' c
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. 0 K6 ~. ~. C; A) {% N+ H9 |) x: [$ H$ N4 m+ o5 Z! a+ M
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.2 t7 N+ ]7 \# l- f& R1 g# |
+ C# [/ h# x+ p"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 D; H4 h/ n& y/ ?0 z( s9 t% ~$ }+ P5 T
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. 3 ?. k5 _# g4 @' v2 Y; E7 l3 y5 K/ ]+ p9 O; }
The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. 5 p0 u1 Y4 o* `) @+ E% J$ i
2 i) ~+ p) W/ H; v/ ]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. 0 f+ x0 \+ [4 x6 z- I
% ]' g# c2 _5 e( oDuring 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. 4 Y/ x/ e, Y3 m : D" Y% J/ h- P2 s( Y) u" L6 YBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. ' P O; ?0 n" J7 v, L% t q7 N8 v' {
"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. . O% e1 v. e; X6 d: X
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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.3 L. ^6 \) {3 m7 `
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********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM