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thank you for the news, 1 I* n7 @& m. B% ^% x/ U4 N+ |# Ji have some news from toronto too.../ O" N/ X: ~" T* G a! E% e4 f
( r0 a7 F- b9 D: V7 i* t/ Rsouthwestern toronto and northern toronto was hit by a tornado2 N- q& ^, a- F: }. D/ {; p
4 P1 k: f4 u( n9 @3 i- n, # I- k1 i$ Z& I) n1 D7 s , I+ E1 ^3 R8 J1 g/ V) u: Gthe southeastern toronto had only a severe storm, no severe damage.; A' H: \- }. K9 m( K
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4 I2 C! ?/ I3 _3 e/ w2 k: b6 F*********************************************************** 5 X/ i+ Z' n ]4 ?9 z7 T$ aResidents of southern Ontario town pick up pieces after confirmed tornado & N, }3 x+ ?7 o$ wby: PAUL CHOI / Y9 Q* F2 d4 c. x4 }; x' Q6 G
Sat Aug 20, 3:47 PM ET + L' L4 k/ X7 B - t+ R# z1 {# y' d" ~ 5 q$ B0 h2 M* y5 KTORONTO (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.# B3 e5 } c/ j* p& 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.9 y# K. W# }/ {2 }' D! H) x6 k9 ]
5 a$ Q' H! o' v( A+ P& HIt 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. 7 i- o' k$ V" ^# Q P; S0 n0 |0 ^$ [2 B
"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." # O$ Q g( S4 O- O $ U2 @ U* \& z, yA 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 F, c, }" h3 v, _' O9 m8 ~) ?7 Q7 p* U3 U7 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.8 t- U& j' d& l
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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." ; z K X( L! I6 r% W# w8 { @& v% }! E8 F0 i! [
On Friday, a state of emergency was declared in the community of Centre Wellington, which includes Fergus, after the storm got out of hand.) o$ x( M; l2 \2 P, y3 c; M- G
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Amidst the wreckage, no serious injuries were reported, provincial police said.' Q5 D: ^& F; q5 t/ j; i
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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."+ ~5 K$ Y% F" Y
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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.8 S8 B7 b$ K3 a# h+ T2 j5 O/ w
/ ~8 a% Z0 M* }5 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. " A& a% r' o! L$ r! h; t2 v) B: i. T& M3 e6 v% {: Z- V
"We were selling this house," he said. "It was for our retirement. Who would want to buy my house now?"6 u i" ?' k Y( h5 N( b
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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.. D8 ]" T+ j! Y) A/ h
& b/ o+ V1 W) p F P$ UAided 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., o9 j; [! q4 a! {
' b y4 k: l' I( R) gCoulson 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. 9 ]. r; \- {* w* |! Y/ G6 _) k: x) _' P5 ~
"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./ }" @8 q5 ]3 R$ ^& h {4 X9 T
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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. / H8 s, M, R" Q8 ~ 0 G- o. ?0 h* I( r9 q$ ~The majority of residents were to have power restored by Saturday night, Welsh said. ' Y7 u1 l4 w$ v, a5 X , I9 R2 R, d' |2 fMeanwhile 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. 5 g2 V9 v7 p: @2 v( ~1 o5 @: D5 H / {( l t) u2 D, g' `* T; @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 X; D, [6 s' w! D9 h* S ' [8 Y! s4 [7 K( ZBut flood waters receded rather rapidly and emergency services were quick to respond. : o- `6 v. \: {0 J& r4 m a8 U, P" I/ A1 n2 ^; c) P6 x
"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. 5 N* n* h$ g& j t" N9 f- s! ?$ A
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"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.2 ^: e& M% P2 m1 l: I: A* U
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********************************************************************作者: daniel1989723 時間: 2005-8-25 03:59 AM