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A line of severe thunderstorms led Environment Canada to issue tornado warnings for the London and Brantford, Ont., areas on Tuesday evening.
Those warnings, along with severe thunderstorm warnings, have since been lifted across southwestern Ontario, and it remains to be seen whether a tornado actually touched down.
Thunderstorm warnings remained in place as of 8:20 p.m. for areas east of Hamilton and in the Niagara Region, advising of damaging gusts and up to quarter-sized hail.
“Emergency Management Ontario recommends that you take cover immediately if threatening weather approaches,” the agency said.
The London Fire Department received several calls about downed trees and power lines, mostly in London’s east end. According to London Hydro, more than 2,000 customers in the city’s Argyle neighbourhood were without power as of 7 p.m., with power expected to be restored by 6 a.m.
The City of London said it received at least 50 reports of downed trees following the storm.
“City crews continue to assess and address tree damage along roads and in public spaces, responding to urgent issues on a priority basis. Initial priorities include clearing blocked roads and addressing trees impacting homes, structures, or vehicles,” the statement read, adding it could take weeks to respond to all the clean-up requests.
Severe thunderstorms rolling across southwestern Ontario on Tuesday prompted tornado warnings for London, St. Thomas, Woodstock and other areas. In London’s Westmount area, Haroon Sohaib captured what appeared to be a rotating funnel cloud outside of his window. As of Tuesday evening, it’s not clear yet whether a tornado touched down in or near the city.
On Burnside Drive, neighbours were out surveying the damage to their homes and vehicles. Many of the properties had downed trees across their yards. The residents of a fourplex had been watching the storm from inside and said it was hard to see what was going on.
“The rain started, and I ran up to see, and it was like white, you couldn’t see the fence,” said Sue Rimell, one of the residents. “Then our fences started to go in and out, and then the trees started to fall.”
After the storm passed, they found a large uprooted tree blocking their driveway.
Winds in excess of 90 kilometres an hour
Earlier in the day, Environment Canada spoke about the potential for a tornado in the London area.
“The wind is the main threat with this,” Alyssa Young, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, told CBC’s Afternoon Drive shortly before 6 p.m. “There’s a threat of winds in excess of 90 kilometres an hour as well as the potential for that spinning rotational wind.”
Environment Canada had said the storm system was capable of producing wind gusts up to 110 km/h, quarter-sized hail and heavy rain.
Young said a significant storm had already passed through London a short time earlier in the afternoon, bringing winds approaching 90 km/h, while another dangerous line of storms was heading east.
That wind was strong enough to startle Kevin and Carole Landry, also on London’s Burnside Drive, when they looked out the window and saw a tree flying toward them.
“The [Environment Canada] warning came up almost instantaneously as soon as I saw the tree,” Carole said. “So we ran down to the basement and missed everything.”
The flying tree had landed on their front lawn, and another tree had landed on one of their cars, taking a power line down with it.
Environment Canada later issued tornado warnings for communities east of London, including Woodstock and Brantford-Brant County, which have since been lifted.
Unusually warm temperatures
Young said the conditions for severe weather developed after unusually warm temperatures over the past two days collided with an advancing cold front.
“That cold front has provided a bit of a trigger,” she said. “The collision of the front with these storms and that boundary helps to create even more potential for tornadoes to develop.”
The severity of the damage across the region is still being assessed, and CBC News will update the story if a Tornado is confirmed.
If you have photos or videos of the storm or reports of damage in your neighbourhood, please send an email to londonnewstips@cbc.ca.
