! b: A! F' d( z; M+ _the southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage. ( _8 W( `& x' l: n & S, ?( |' m2 i9 M& \5 k8 m$ w. r1 P& K
*********************************************************** ) i* I4 r6 }' [7 QResidents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado ( p: v9 J2 W$ P* a: j$ ^9 B& ]! aby: PAUL CHOI ; m! d$ z6 G( _2 B4 Z8 w9 ?Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET 3 ?6 I+ ]' ]1 r# d2 f# U& U, u# v$ w9 u5 o
/ E, L$ Q: v" n. r) W9 [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.! \+ l9 T; g: Y `4 R) t* J5 {
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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. + \' U% {& I0 W( w3 G3 t, J( ^* |- r) N9 i6 K
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. 3 W! d5 Y3 c$ r3 S( P3 H, i 2 @- S' `% q X"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."" L% `+ }4 j8 y5 P# q
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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. ! ^, x* k1 m. @$ Y ' Q$ Z, M8 R5 s5 s5 `; f- z% {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.5 I. H' R1 I1 U% B
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"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."1 W0 @8 H) Z+ _( w0 ?7 b v0 R. `
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On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.! u5 t x$ p1 g: q R
) h" i* u! c+ i' J9 E% OAmidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.' U1 `9 }! H7 Z) b3 w2 w# h
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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." 8 C: q- a& v1 l: ^" Q% ~- T! }" V% C8 l0 x4 d8 r
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.6 I7 T1 c% R$ h- f1 q. X, Q/ B9 f
& I& I5 O6 i; E0 E# ?" 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. 2 r3 s/ _$ N+ b. i 5 y$ J6 p) ^" Q% R"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"# H) J/ M: o" x! O3 U
; ^0 s, ^' D* F0 ZOfficials continued studying the aftermath in other areas of southern Ontario Saturday afternoon, trying to determine if other regions were hit by tornadoes. 4 j" @. S$ N3 ^, e9 @ ! m- \/ B' F' e4 v# _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. 9 [8 y) Y( ? \% s. P6 b$ ~" _ z ?
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." @* q5 M# ]0 M; L
) n( n& v: S" r6 o! G"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.* o1 @- A# E6 o" ^3 W9 l
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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. " \; Y8 j) b4 p- j/ a 0 G5 G* j+ _4 k' pThe majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. * {/ D I; m4 |- U c8 ] ' K% G' ]: W4 [' C' d: B0 aMeanwhile 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. / C2 S# z! S+ q9 K" F7 T1 E8 O
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. . u- h& `' M, d1 u7 W D 1 H$ X0 `6 k& W; y+ k5 ]* Q8 g) uBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. / w1 q5 P0 l% |3 I7 E4 F2 q: Y J$ ?3 c4 y) g
"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. ! q2 ]: A9 l( J5 N- s: _' _8 i9 H
, w4 }4 H- x3 s3 \"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. 5 J( u" S, [& {9 C" U% Z$ j @4 d
********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM