0 l5 @; o# |7 R/ K, i. c0 c7 [- Z, . K( C: q8 A8 L 9 |7 n7 W# O/ b! i0 A% ]8 L+ y6 athe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. $ C$ Z: h. T7 h. Y9 ]& z9 j# `/ L; X/ P8 W L& A/ q
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*********************************************************** ; u$ O1 }+ G+ pResidents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado + e k2 \5 z9 R. N( C# y$ I7 f
by: PAUL CHOI - R x# f8 n% `# `# ?* E. E. CSat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET ( F8 {; Y; {. l8 S0 c0 g3 k9 H% g3 I( X! B9 I2 P$ q J3 F* y
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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. * v! a" _) u7 L9 Z7 a+ m i! d. ?% v3 [5 K8 v- L0 W
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.1 H. F. Y3 B, u% A6 O, P
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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. . Z( e9 M8 M8 ^3 H7 R; o" t U/ B" W @: Y' _0 s- r. _; U
"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."* M7 L0 M7 M: h9 C' }& o- c$ Y1 q
7 D& _/ t% }3 M" I& f. j+ NA 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. : J2 e. Q$ G+ d. m# U7 n 9 I5 e8 c1 P b- L' QElsewhere 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( K- k6 }+ v/ v 3 g9 N1 g6 Z0 `! L1 A6 j4 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." G& ^8 j& l& @$ |# ]2 F2 A
! f4 K& X9 I: g) g; O% D. tOn Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand. ( K6 D% S4 c# v5 h( s* j* {0 c# E" \/ `$ c! ^" g: ^! D
Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.$ D" p* Q0 @1 Q* i: s% N3 `
( n$ f5 G" A" J"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." ) Y$ L! E* L/ _ " P- Q" v( L4 _8 m DFergus resident Klaus Doerig and his wife, Judy, were at home when the skies turned menacingly grey and tree limbs began flying past their window., x& M8 A) x$ u
# J) s1 T4 H. k/ F# JThey 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. * Z6 ~" ]/ S+ l, o2 W3 m6 O6 Y# f& F' J' A! l5 x& k1 b
"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"- A+ J1 B+ B/ x3 w$ K( R
4 y2 f& X* ~' ~7 O# i8 _; AOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes. 0 L: ?0 G6 m m& n2 o' }2 q , ~8 T6 m$ z% lAided 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. , b: F3 [; G8 O5 @ ! w& H* \% u: |1 yCoulson 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. + I& i( M7 V9 ~/ }1 H 6 Q3 |5 w$ S) f& \* e& J# F, j& E/ j"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. : d6 Y0 i' a( t1 l! T& C1 x W* _: T/ z. a
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. - K. C- \$ H* d) L7 n: m. u8 D$ O2 ^; k& ]- @
The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. * a4 d9 P }7 \! b" j/ H: |& e
& I3 m3 L3 @6 r! z1 ~# [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. % K% x* }" N% ~ ^9 f+ o
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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. b5 s# p' c* }6 z
) v$ `7 v& N# I% V: N5 ?But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. s, u0 R7 c* y. i$ r2 @+ X , o; O7 a( V: g7 u4 f6 J8 }"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. 3 Z% `8 Q1 R) A" e, b. \$ ]+ E , \, r# Z% x4 X% P. a v"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. , Z: D3 @$ o% U+ c8 I 2 M/ ?. [1 c( v' R5 O2 |* u5 g# v********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM