: v9 G1 q& m/ W9 |+ bsouthwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado 9 ]# G B) b- d- f6 G# q- N( a$ p, Z! F& u3 d Y: H2 Y
, , Y$ H: @ x; W. @4 k3 C 6 Z" r' s* n( Ythe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage.$ r7 P* _6 h- [4 k* s. G9 w; i
8 W* |2 v% B. O- i* r1 [" A
1 B& `2 |; Y! w7 G- n0 @***********************************************************( x! F( c# V7 ~6 J8 L& ? Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado 4 w; ^0 [7 \' |5 l: Uby: PAUL CHOI 9 B3 n; g6 t$ o+ [Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET 8 H$ F6 _* l$ b- ?. A: a- v7 J! p D5 L
2 m9 q+ I; L" P, @9 Y9 C1 e
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. 9 p) z9 _- Q0 U! G. y3 [" w 8 j1 i& h& P8 L0 u$ AThe 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.+ H1 r7 m5 Z1 i9 A$ S+ n6 B
% |6 C+ \, k+ j+ r+ @: d( ~0 a
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.1 }: y7 B: i! p6 a( ^: F
8 G9 c( x: Z- K1 B6 }"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." ! H4 ~4 d' ]$ u9 U p5 V8 [. s" t0 t _
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. ; | J) |2 ?, F * s' N/ [! F/ V( N6 E" `% SElsewhere 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. " a: O$ r. j# @5 \4 Q: O# T / x9 S2 U# S( Q$ j/ }1 r"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."( A# @; i) ]5 ?, L$ x2 {
$ ]+ Q3 o3 |2 u" j
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.' K# C' h* T1 y# P1 M/ n/ m
' q9 q0 d* o/ xAmidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. & \+ o. @/ }8 |, w ' b8 r( L p6 C9 i$ `, 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." : p9 @% f: p9 ~, s$ ?8 z1 B 1 u: l1 g& I2 W9 @ X/ t, r: JFergus resident Klaus Doerig and his wife, Judy, were at home when the skies turned menacingly grey and tree limbs began flying past their window. " G( @$ \0 u4 B A2 S* @ 1 d' i, P' _7 w. R( g1 m6 ], dThey 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.* [- z+ h; m4 S: j, ^
5 e4 x/ e. j# Y$ b' h0 C2 S
"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?" |) [. k e: M% N N, M9 m1 l
* {- q# m4 w8 @. J" zOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.4 {& ]$ J4 x# k4 k u
$ s# `7 d e5 o) u) V4 s7 X7 a
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. ) F5 M! |" Y% @$ V2 r+ z1 Z1 V9 R) ~
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. 3 ]# W4 O4 B) m5 q# C/ U& M9 x1 ~5 ]2 B9 J, i+ Q0 ?* U
"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.1 a1 F8 W- ^ c/ p! Z9 A; G
8 A+ \0 V/ P0 c+ c6 C# O3 J- p
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* H4 I( e5 V7 Y2 B5 j
+ ~& t# F7 p4 M5 b1 x* Q: y
The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. 1 s. n5 R" L2 F! ? , v4 u5 d; G! Y3 vMeanwhile 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 r1 [3 L" [/ U8 Q2 I( w
1 X# x1 _# `2 F; u" k8 ^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. 7 q, C2 k x6 H' B6 s7 \, }
" A0 d: Y* p8 E4 B
But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. ( W% Y# u% s; s
, F: y* z" `5 {"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. $ H8 E$ _' b1 E+ P& T
- V h" u/ [9 y$ l: }, W
"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 j- p# o; T6 V( x; M1 N7 d3 A& n
2 W3 Q/ |1 \3 n0 V4 D$ [8 j
********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM