0 Q; O: q5 T. X2 rsouthwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado ) d: n2 I3 g5 I3 C- \, C R 4 o+ q+ |0 D* h4 [,8 q- p1 F# { A* I
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the southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. ; \' b2 U9 `7 m4 @, ], V/ U6 ?$ I+ `3 H* F7 G
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*********************************************************** / n% o+ D7 S7 D; U2 i* w6 [Residents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado # x# T! {+ g, \$ dby: PAUL CHOI ; g; w5 x& X4 d! W( y0 @0 p
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET- V1 y# W) {1 h& u/ m. h5 u4 S6 v/ u1 y
9 }) N) k1 j5 C0 r3 T 1 d4 h2 {. [; M1 [( S* n. dTORONTO (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. % {! @, {# |* H' w* K- i+ \7 { & s8 O( h7 l$ Y3 \3 }( L4 Q1 c9 tThe 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.4 g! w* u+ X( W
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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./ |' r0 u, B! [- @* N( T; E
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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."6 A K* ^- O$ a9 p' \5 F4 K; u9 D
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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.4 W/ h6 H. }5 [9 @' R
3 w0 k1 c: q+ ~; 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.. e7 U6 Q( t6 \2 O* Q9 i; e- c
- n& i0 T- i/ H/ r) j! z9 z7 n"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." 4 I7 a; E2 d' L- V" l/ C* r b, }+ `9 g. v d
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand. 1 {4 _# s/ p5 ^- ^ m1 r 3 x0 {! c q1 d- cAmidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.4 a7 e8 h, T' K+ O5 [
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"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." . O! k7 o1 E4 K* G# w# s6 [ 6 F: }5 n( 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." X: R7 W) o$ q/ G9 y5 L7 A
& h2 |2 R& b4 b: }3 oThey 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. {0 l; y" k0 v/ C! K 5 k, u2 t9 W8 k6 z# {"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?" % }8 w' r, Z: l7 N 8 U3 K6 k7 u/ {- l. U# M; pOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes.8 S" r R2 ` V) ]$ Q! d
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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.4 C( A6 Y! @. o' ?4 v+ s. F
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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.# C9 v$ u/ a; B- f( Q- H( z: i
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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.& D" ?' o+ ` K
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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. " K2 P. S; c$ ]: G% p- k2 A# X9 f# F' H" s k
The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. 6 y0 e8 Y3 L1 }
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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. # C& f/ d$ V6 S7 W5 i/ m ; r9 ~7 f8 n, y* r+ YDuring 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. 1 E7 K$ ~5 Z6 Q% d) A2 E9 [
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But flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. 2 T$ {0 q# ^+ D, I
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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. ' J. u/ P; `0 _; H * I1 `1 y- l' z E Z- |"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. ' V+ U. x8 }* i) F& O0 j8 f6 J5 h/ ]# G7 C$ f* b9 h
********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM