2 M$ @' l: I/ z$ ~" o$ Xhttp://images.ctv.ca/archives/CTVNews/img2/20050819/160_toronto_flood_050819.jpg $ v O5 Y q3 x& \8 d$ A2 I; C k
southwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado $ ^( j7 S2 U* u! F1 t7 b# p2 \9 i2 o x4 X/ H; V! @
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the southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. 2 r1 q- E, \" }) r5 J! J. K& F$ c! I& G3 [5 b
8 r! j4 H1 P/ r' `*********************************************************** 1 t( U8 e- A; |9 HResidents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado _/ h# R' \( B& h
by: PAUL CHOI ( s; a& O; `4 |$ C( C8 Q
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET $ O3 r0 `. ], n4 F% q, I1 l) O' k. U, N5 I; w
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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.0 f( f9 D: O/ C/ s- [
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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.7 U5 g o3 s$ B& 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.% D% ]4 D6 U8 H2 O6 W2 M% w, u
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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." ! P! y+ q$ r2 ]) D E% e / R2 y5 k |0 CA 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.; k/ S' `3 v$ d$ Q1 ?
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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. & l) [" y. t8 b- X5 t3 N 4 w% [+ [' w7 y: ?"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."! C! T9 U+ W A
/ t+ ^2 f3 |: Z1 g. F* vOn Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.* j$ C/ G, ` E/ F; s" c, J$ G
6 b: n: |' n$ |0 ~Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.% N0 |3 M/ |% l0 C* N( g
+ U6 H- i0 n7 n/ t; W- u"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." . Y4 }2 c3 X' K2 X* m9 k 4 c8 ?- x! S0 C4 f& q# {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. # ?5 [ k2 _* | ; ^( T7 i/ N8 P8 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. " G- I1 V( r' s, Z9 K: }( I: _' E' w" M8 e4 Y% `+ s( z7 h2 d, J3 t
"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"4 d0 ~' a+ Y" i+ u
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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. & b% k* P0 o) r, {9 F' W* ?3 l* E/ a2 b+ E
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. , o. P. G# E. b5 `2 t: K4 U. G4 J8 A
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.4 p( x3 y8 \: G4 [- K, Y& r' T+ T
) G; }- U! m. v"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. ; q, s0 A9 l4 A% d+ i( H" _' m & q3 P7 s, n0 }, o8 SDue 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. ! r5 c# S9 ?. j5 O7 X7 [/ `8 I* G/ A3 A$ i. U- @
The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. : K) T) q' f7 B, q 6 o+ L+ I: {9 `1 ?$ BMeanwhile 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. : b' ^7 o5 q0 Q1 w! C
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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. 6 Y! E! }% f( I* D( j / Y6 A8 n# v& w+ zBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. ! N( v' v, ]5 n0 V : W5 q7 |) [, |: ?: r5 v/ f"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. ) v; S# r" y! ?1 q8 s7 \( Q' B9 G$ H0 x8 i, p
"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. ; _& ^$ O( ?7 | % @: D. v2 y( G- D9 V. T* C********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM