. U, K$ |7 H/ n% ` o) Ithe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. ( K2 ]+ I; ?$ U) d% t* M% F2 S7 X7 [; A, Q4 o" Y
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*********************************************************** : c; _8 a# q' ~3 m9 B5 Y( [. eResidents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado 4 _ K' q. a0 x; d
by: PAUL CHOI $ D5 q1 H5 N3 e, t' xSat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET ( Q; P7 n: l2 F4 Y4 ^ 7 b0 a. g* z" k! d$ s! S. d2 Y0 ~9 x" K
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. ) J7 i4 n# e+ F/ h9 {$ S5 W- S) ~9 c% O4 x% ]" g
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. 6 Y, @2 I1 r% k! e . y) z: k$ O6 N/ K4 `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. # [" t+ Q( h8 d% B6 p& R5 T" V- C4 d6 N* {
"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." C H( u. G' q7 U3 f- e, ]- b 6 L- q! F2 c7 E7 X( zA 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. - M( t4 b+ b- {8 ^( i# E7 B - C; n/ c) ^4 P9 A% GElsewhere 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.) O& O) J; F7 c; M) \ n
: a2 {" R5 M2 D) I' 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." 6 {) g3 P- l8 K- G$ [/ i0 Q( Y' J$ H; U- r9 p1 h) q0 o
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand., e5 E8 r0 R, w3 j
3 l+ C% j; F& p# S+ oAmidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said. 3 X/ Z( I! d3 o# H # w3 A; v' N4 ]/ c9 ~"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." 3 z* c# z8 v$ v _' o/ \. S- f" s$ M2 ]; w5 v4 {( o
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." p" ^* y4 T' O2 _
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They 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.; K1 Y% P, R: U/ L* M
y f" t0 ^, ?, j' d2 X"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?" i& [9 z0 w1 g" M2 ]6 D! D
0 S* J0 V5 e' r4 Z3 vOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.7 ?1 I- \! ^6 J, L
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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. 7 U A2 B+ j b6 l/ w. I9 t5 d5 j4 w7 Z$ L) d; {7 h
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. D) \0 [ b8 s ]- O5 v4 o0 R4 Y
$ |/ i* |5 P( O6 Y, B4 N"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. ! I) A" D" T3 Y: w 4 y2 B+ S2 a1 f2 w F2 PDue 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. & l8 K% M. o$ Q. v+ q+ ]2 V
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The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. 1 s; l+ c' X9 Q4 t
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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 v# D) V* c: i5 s# M& _$ U- z* e6 {
& j# N: W% O+ P6 P7 y0 q, `; bDuring 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. 8 P6 e7 G: o9 q5 S/ o0 _
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But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. - R( }! d7 }: u3 E
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"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. 8 o, N( o8 m7 ^) h: s/ {8 o0 X7 v' _' t8 Y6 d2 V/ q3 d; w. Q
"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. # n3 h: v" Y* a& d % O- k$ |- r/ y& ~6 c! C" ?1 c' ?********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM