Storm sweeps Ontario

Freezing rain coats trees in central Ontario, 30 Dec 2019 (South Simcoe Police)

Ontario is so large and sprawling that it’s rare one storm could impact most of the province but that’s what happened Sunday into Monday.

A large low pressure system brought severe winds to the southwest, hours of freezing rain in the east and heavy snow in the northwest.

Temperatures also soared briefly in the Greater Toronto Area with a new record high of 10.2°C set at Pearson Airport.

Freezing rain duration in hours:

• Ottawa Int’l Airport – 22
• Sudbury – 20
• CFB Trenton – 18

Snowfall in cm:

• Marathon – 37
• Thunder Bay – 30
• Atikokan – 18

Maximum wind gusts in km/h:

• Chatham-Kent – 104
• Windsor – 100
• Toronto Billy Bishop Airport – 81

(Data courtesy Environment Canada)

Tornadoes hit SW Ontario

Trees uprooted by a tornado damage a home in Waterford, Norfolk County, ON, 13 June 2018 (OPP)

Two tornadoes have been confirmed in Haldimand, Norfolk and Oxford counties as severe thunderstorms rolled through Southwestern Ontario on 13 June.

Environment Canada says a tornado categorized as an EF-2 (Enhanced Fujita Scale 2) with maximum winds of 180 km/h ripped through the communities of Jarvis and Waterford uprooting trees, ripping shingles off buildings and destroying several barns.

Damage was reported intermittently along a path roughly 32 km long.

A second, less powerful twister categorized as an EF-0 struck near the town of Norwich around the same time and caused minimal damage.

Rivers spill banks in SW Ontario

The Thames river downtown Chatham this morning. #CKFLOOD2018 #ckont pic.twitter.com/A8U3nHEZKe

— Matthew Tape (@MTapester) February 24, 2018

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Days of rain, melting snow and ice jams have created swollen rivers and streams in Southwestern Ontario causing historic flooding.

A young boy was swept from his mother’s arms in a stranded vehicle along the Grand River near Orangeville and efforts to find him are still underway.

Streets, homes and businesses in low-lying areas of Chatham-Kent were flooded after officials say the Thames River peaked at 5.25 metres above normal Saturday.

Emergency responders had to rescue some residents by boat who were taken to a local convention centre for shelter.

Canada’s Top 10 Weather Stories 2017

Icy road on the Acadian Peninsula, 27 Jan 2017 (Twitter)

Canada had the eighth warmest period in 70 years of reporting weather in 2017, with temperatures averaging 1.4°C above normal.

From a list of 100 significant weather events across the country, Environment Canada picked the top 10 weather stories of the year:

1. Long and destructive summer wildfire season in British Columbia

2. Hot and dry summer in the West from Interior BC to Manitoba

3. Spring flooding in Quebec and Ontario

4. Cold and snowy winter in BC including Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island

5. More heavy rain and flooding in Southwestern Ontario during late August

6. Cool and wet summer in Central Canada

7. Heavy snow cripples Ontario and Quebec in mid-March

8. Record heat across Eastern Canada during September

9. Blizzards hit Newfoundland in March and April

10. Lengthy ice storm impacts New Brunswick in late January

Heavy rain hits SW Ontario

Flooding in Windsor, ON, 29 Sept 2016 (Windsor Star/Twitter)

Upwards of two months worth of rain has fallen in just a few days in a corner of Southwestern Ontario which includes Windsor and Tecumseh.

The normal September rainfall in the region is just under 100 mm with as much as 195 mm falling in some areas this week prompting a state of emergency.

Environment Canada says a strong and slow moving low pressure system brought heavy rain which led to flooding.

More than 1,500 Windsor residents reported basement flooding and many streets were inundated with water leaving vehicles stuck.

Tornadoes hit SW Ontario

Tornado forming near expressway in Windsor, ON, 24 Aug 2016 (Twitter)

Environment Canada has confirmed two tornadoes touched down in Southwestern Ontario Wednesday night (24 August).

The first one struck in LaSalle and another one hit nearby Windsor.

No one was seriously hurt but emergency responders assessed reports of trees toppling over and property damage.

The mayor of Windsor said at least 15 homes in the city were too damaged for residents to re-enter.