HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2011-08-25, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 2011.Goderich tornado reaches over 250 km/hour
Like a matchstick
A utility pole on East Street in Goderich was snapped in two
during the F3 tornado that touched down in Goderich’s
downtown core on Aug. 21. The tornado has, as of press
time, resulted in one death and more than 30 injuries, as
well as leaving more than half of Goderich without power.
(Denny Scott photo)
It only took a minute or two but
one man is dead and millions of
dollars in damage has been caused
by a confirmed tornado that touched
down in Goderich and Benmiller late
Sunday afternoon.
The tornado made its way over
Lake Huron, along West Street,
through The Square and up East
Street in Goderich just before 4 p.m.
before continuing east to Benmiller
and parts of Central Huron.
Winds reached speeds as high as
300 kilometres per hour as the
tornado damaged well over 100
buildings and 150 businesses.
Environment Canada confirmed
Sunday night that it was indeed a
tornado that touched down in Huron
County, classifying it between an F2
and F3-scale tornado on the Fujita
Scale. An F5 on the scale isclassified when a town is completelylevelled.
The last F3-scale tornado seen in
Ontario was in the Orangeville area
in 1996.
A tornado warning was officially
issued just 12 minutes before the
twister actually touched ground.
The one confirmed death was an
employee at Goderich’s Sifto Salt
mine, a Lucknow man named
Norman Laberge. Laberge was 61.
To date, there have been nearly 40
additional injuries reported as a
result of the tornado.
Shortly after Goderich was closed
off to vehicular traffic, a state of
emergency was officially declared
by Mayor Deb Shewfelt.
The disaster has attracted the
attention of Premier Dalton
McGuinty who has now promised to
help rebuild Goderich.
“It will be a pretty town once
again,” McGuinty told a local radio
station.
Witnesses have reported seeing
hail the size of golf balls during the
mere minutes of devastation. The
high winds uprooted large trees,
broke tree limbs, some buildingss
have lost their roofs and other
buildings have been completely
demolished by the twister. Dozens of
vehicles were also flipped over or
damaged by flying debris.
Power had been out for many
homes overnight and natural gas
supplies were cut after reports of
leaks throughout the town were
received.
Roofs were blown off of two
buildings at the Benmiller Inn,
which had been evacuated.
Early reports stated the tornado
had touched down in
Londesborough. There have been
reports of sheds and barns being
damaged in the southern portion of
Central Huron’s East Ward.
The internet has been awash with
pictures and videos of the
devastation and an outpouring of
support for the community that has
now been described as looking like a“war zone”.The relief effort began
immediately with the Knights of
Columbus hall being opened as an
emergency shelter providing food,
water and shelter to those who
needed it, in addition to emergency
crews that were called in from as far
away as Guelph and London.
It was at a press conference from
the Knights of Columbus hall that
Shewfelt told residents to stay away
from Goderich’s downtown core in
order to let emergency personnel do
their job and focus on public safety.
Shortly after the storm had torn
through the town and the rain had
stopped, streets everywhere were
full of residents walking around,
taking pictures and surveying the
damage.
Sirens could be heard for hours
after the storm, which were quickly
followed by the sound of chain saws
from neighbours helping those who
were impeded by fallen trees or
loose tree limbs.
Just minutes after the storm Huron
County OPP officers were
everywhere closing down unsafe
streets to vehicular traffic and
limiting the number of vehicles
allowed into Goderich.
The short-term goals, as outlined
by McGuinty, are to restore power to
all affected homes and to ensure the
health and safety of everyone
affected by the tornado by getting
them back in their homes.
Rebuilding the town will be the
long-term goal, he said.
Unfortunately, we
couldn’t fit everyone
in the picture.
THIS YEAR, ONTARIO CREATED MORE JOBS
THAN ALL OTHER PROVINCES COMBINED.
Source: Statistics Canada.
Carol Mitchell, MPP
Clinton Office: 519-482-5630 | Kincardine Office: 519-396-3007 | www.carolmitchell.ca
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Where once were trees
Devastation on an unseen scale in Huron County visited itself upon Goderich, and especially
its downtown core over the weekend. The Square, which houses the Goderich Court House,
seen here, would normally be ripe with greenery at this time, but an F3 tornado that touched
down here levelled most of the trees in the area, tore the roofs off homes and businesses and
disrupted services for most of the town. (Denny Scott photo)
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