Tornado tears a path across Ottawa, Gatineau area
String of storms destroys homes, downs power lines
OTTAWA • A tornado damaged cars in Gatineau, Que., and houses across the west end of Ottawa Friday afternoon as much of southern Ontario saw severe thunderstorms and high wind gusts, Environment Canada said.
Peter Kimbell, a meteorologist with the national weather agency, said the tornado overturned cars on Highway 50 in Gatineau and caused extensive damage to houses in Dunrobin, Ont.
He said a line of thunderstorms running from west of Ottawa and into Gatineau were expected to continue until Friday night.
Fire trucks lined streets in Gatineau, where debris and downed trees covered roads. Massive billboards were also overturned near the Sabourin arena.
The city announced it was opening a mobile command post and an emergency measures centre. Municipal authorities also carried out evacuations in collaboration with the Red Cross and the campus of Cegep de l’Outaouais was converted into a disaster centre.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged residents of both cities to “stay safe, follow the instructions of first responders and check in with people who might need extra help.”
“We’re monitoring the situation and thinking of everyone affected,” he said on Twitter.
Ottawa resident Glenn Johnson said he and his partner were in their kitchen just after 5:30 p.m. when the storm blew out their windows.
“We were trying to get down in the basement ... and glass started flying,” said Johnson, who lives in Nepean. “My partner got her foot cut and I got hit with flying glass as we were trying to get the dogs and cat and everything down in the basement.”
He said the roof of his neighbour’s house was torn off and the second storey of another house was gone by the time the intense system passed.
“You can’t even get down the street because there are so many giant trees that had been taken down,” Johnson said. “My backyard just looks like a junk yard right now.”
He said he has gone door to door to check on neighbours. No major injuries have been reported.
“There had been kids in the park right behind our place up until about 15 minutes before this happened and there was a big tree that went down in the park where the kids’ playground is,” Johnson said. “It could have been much, much worse.”
Meanwhile, Hydro Ottawa said that at least 147,000 customers were affected by power outages in the city because of the storm.
“There is significant damage to the grid and all crews are out assessing damage and will establish a priority restoration,” the utility company said in a tweet.
The Greater Toronto Area saw thunderstorms and wind gusts of up to 80 kilometres per hour, also leaving thousands without power.
Hydro Toronto said on Twitter that more than 5,000 customers were without power and restoration efforts were expected to last into Saturday.
“We have all available crews out in the field,” Toronto Hydro said. “They’re working in dangerous conditions and, at times, are not able to start repairs until the wind weakens.”