" c! T6 l( s/ o0 ~8 S7 Osouthwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado + Q) H( n: S0 ? 0 e) z5 X9 ^! z. k/ K' }7 ~# f2 A u4 I, , X1 K2 D1 |$ @% t' V7 z, [7 _ Y( ^1 N# F. w9 O
the southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage.5 t9 i4 S: \: z0 {8 R0 O0 l* j M
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*********************************************************** , {2 V! _0 U; D1 Z3 y# _Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado ! A, Z) l8 k9 ~) R. z
by: PAUL CHOI / e4 ] N1 W& m8 |6 I( B
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET6 Z* F; g+ q: v: Q# }4 c" N
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9 }- V$ u8 F- x- W' K ITORONTO (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.# L/ M4 u0 y5 o4 q$ c- N
% Z. E" h6 o' Z l* V. J1 ?+ f5 Q+ NThe 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. c' n( ]0 G8 o* ~5 \& s5 W5 _! l" o1 N+ T4 {: c3 y% B. h
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 y1 a2 c% k) n' S2 [6 N9 W7 o6 ^+ T8 k+ q# |
"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." $ G$ F) ^! u `( T, ^1 X : n$ \; X" }/ z) x' q4 eA 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. * S9 i9 `9 H) V, U/ h$ E E# y* {' y3 X0 g" x, U
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. ' Y- u+ x; Z/ C+ V) F/ i" a5 Q+ S0 n* F/ D* O7 R& k
"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# r( }/ i& m& k: `. E
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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. 4 w$ v1 P2 O1 D' X9 F 9 m; v o. r% KAmidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. ! `+ V d M6 X1 Y; P8 y9 i 0 M2 h, B7 S. N$ M1 d$ F"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." : V$ {( i6 q, k$ U 2 W2 Q: r9 V, X/ @+ f/ ~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.) K8 m: A7 P: n' k
' C* e2 K3 A9 i& nThey 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. / ]- w4 I/ a9 s5 y3 o5 x) f : q/ Z# n7 S2 z9 ~: p7 h' Y9 }"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?" 5 S0 \# H- Q8 r# H8 b2 Z) M# E O5 [* ^9 ]$ O3 v
Officials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.! V! E0 {2 C {/ m
& f2 ]8 i/ e- s. `1 U( SAided 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./ u* ]0 ~2 w; f- d
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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. . h* v' }% r& {. \: Y7 x* d : V/ s& o4 |; v0 m6 O$ C"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.8 _% G4 N L, w7 }
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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. ! h5 |) s. `; h3 m4 F. L
9 {' I( N3 Q: e: TThe majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. 9 m% ]( C- [1 D$ b& W 8 z8 l \6 y( D6 rMeanwhile 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' t. {' r. K- J6 T5 k6 B3 J
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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. # \: E' D! M- z$ A! A$ B" J! o! h8 T
But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. 3 g, n; a% M# p$ R7 n3 ~# q
* \$ h( M; ^& z8 Z$ X) J"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. % ]; S. ~( f" E2 H% T# a' i5 u
. R1 ^2 t7 ~ X" v* e"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. 5 w8 q+ s, T: J6 ?( ] * Y% P7 [9 c; g( u& F********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM