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thank you for the news, * ~' f$ t( W9 o! b
i have some news from toronto too.../ v( Y; E3 C: ~
! J+ x" h/ t" E9 d( L. J9 c2 ]8 Xthe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage.7 Z+ F/ w( i$ U" W, P: z
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***********************************************************5 @% T; N2 z8 \3 W6 m Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado 4 R7 u& ~: |0 P0 c" I) W3 ]by: PAUL CHOI $ d1 S7 W, P; v! V' k% D% L
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET- J# @- S: f+ {
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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.2 f* W" |( q5 K, K% Q6 l' {# x
8 u; B' a2 S/ rThe 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 |' Y# {! G0 g0 T. p1 u1 m, A0 b
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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. ' n T* o) } `9 g3 `7 m1 n* |% E- h8 r- _' n/ 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." 5 E$ A* |; x+ N( _0 B, P' W" p9 b7 N4 o, V
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. + |% a9 \8 ^) t6 L& p, h( K: {+ T- V" F! v% u8 i0 F- T
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. 2 ]( ]. m' {. x' R$ N( o0 c. j6 S$ J+ c, b" L
"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." O; q( Q0 g5 k. c" @& ~4 H( t) M! G4 u+ f$ B& C8 L) l) P( u
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand. ( J8 e4 B6 T5 b( g0 R8 ]/ o8 O/ M0 y# S
Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.8 b2 V9 w1 }# t6 C) U6 n- L* i) g
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"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." 8 ~" T. H- T7 L, n# J% q" q% {# Z4 O5 N; U( z* B3 W
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.# M ]; [: ^; z
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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. 7 E3 u% h* I z$ Q7 t, C, D6 k9 ]/ I( Z- A( o# L$ ^
"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?": J* y& p4 u3 l6 j& W: d6 y
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Officials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.' ~7 Y9 s3 @- b% ~4 t
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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.0 A: W3 U* o$ d) s9 Y' n
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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.. z0 ~& Q: B% a& f
. F& E& o8 @6 N( ~"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. Z4 O8 H# [: v
7 v9 K8 ~; S) R9 s" JDue 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. " _7 k% Y i& t
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The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. * R5 P0 q2 o6 ^6 R/ ?8 S, {0 J+ r
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. 2 e/ l! P( m8 f1 |6 ?# Q ; R" [1 Z+ \) g* R9 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. 3 C0 `) H6 @2 N i3 }
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But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. . k. Q) p! h3 Q # o6 x9 I3 Y# c$ t8 H l 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. 1 p# V% i& w! E- D2 U2 l& ~
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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. . X. I- i! b9 o4 F F8 m2 W: N1 r- u; [
********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM