: I5 z8 n2 V3 V5 nthe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage.4 A0 _5 v+ A1 U+ w) N4 f) W- ?3 e
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***********************************************************% r3 f* m8 s3 Z- Z4 v Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado # n+ p0 }4 W! Yby: PAUL CHOI * \+ W/ H8 L2 `
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET. ^% k! L" u/ _( w/ a
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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., s& N5 W& r; P. r3 b
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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. 0 n8 Q5 c3 r, U/ U1 K" p - n4 D; B) p$ ]0 D- K8 o' GIt 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./ V: g5 e+ r z8 v/ g
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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."% {. v! k- F- q7 o! t: _! G6 @. g
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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. $ Z4 G9 g6 O- E0 ~: X% D. A W/ \2 J
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.. X' c _9 V% d0 y, w
/ I5 k( `, 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." 3 k: `# j; D% f9 ~0 w4 y. A8 x- x5 ?' @* f, V* R/ g
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.( F/ N8 a# }: K- z5 N0 M! o
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Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. $ Q% {* b2 v j& }$ c. L4 O+ E9 i8 j0 X/ _8 G8 h* J$ o
"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% _1 ?) ]& ]& Y+ B. D" e5 D) [
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. - z6 B+ R) V" i( w ' }. Z! [) Y4 qThey 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 {7 p+ e. }% M9 ~- K2 g8 U9 L % M( x g9 H5 G& G$ a"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?" 2 n# V9 y& @4 F' ~ 8 R% z+ W: f% Y; w& D& hOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes. 4 k6 C/ J4 S; b- D! G' m" I: y! P! D2 _6 n0 G
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. $ V1 @+ X4 ]+ v6 @4 H9 r. g " O3 X$ ~/ {$ Y3 i9 |9 U5 xCoulson 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.6 a0 V$ Q0 \8 b. g8 N
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"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.7 e$ b' s S' S/ I) a& X: u; I
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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. 5 s" C2 r* b+ s2 I
i; L. Y' ^% |* g% B( R+ ?, XThe majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. U% v: G0 L( l8 f; T0 D0 }, C: P- K1 n( }; L/ M& t
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 }. X6 v0 R2 E8 v" S0 c. t4 g# _0 u! v# R* i5 d4 h/ o# M G
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. a: f: o" W3 {. Q2 y2 g! C4 [' y; C- q3 S+ I1 p" L
But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. ! x# I1 _0 g2 Q0 | f& W2 E' f% ~7 a6 `! ]
"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. 5 ?' c" c4 L: l) g- W6 N
1 L2 d( `) e# f& e( @5 F ~"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./ ~7 t+ i" A0 c" @! O6 k1 y: I# S9 ^