An army of volunteers is joining Ottawa firefighters in a race to save what they can of dozens of homes badly damaged in Friday's tornado. Coun. Eli El-Chantiry confirmed about 200 "skilled" volunteers had been cleared to enter the damaged areas in Dunrobin. They will be boarding up windows, sheeting the roofs with tarps and clearing debris to make room for hydro crews to operate. The city still isn't sure of the extent of the damage in certain areas, but El-Chantiry said crews are working hard to beat the rain that's expected later this week. "We're dealing with the logistics," he told reporters on Monday afternoon. A large chunk of the work will be devoted to clearing ditches of debris to prevent water blockage or overflow of contaminants, the councillor said. Hydro crews are still working on restoring power, and he expected by late afternoon on Monday sections of Dunrobin would have electricity again. Homes to be demolished So far, 53 homes in his ward in the city's west end have been classified as significantly damaged. More than half will likely need to be demolished. The majority of owners of those homes have surveyed their properties with building inspectors to evaluate the damage. Many of the hundreds of volunteers screened for clearance to the damaged areas have construction experience, including contractor Ron Wilson. We just want to come out and help the community. - Ron Wilson, volunteer His workers are assisting to weatherproofing the homes in Dunrobin. "We live very close to this," he told CBC News. "We just want to come out and help the community." One of the tornadoes hit especially close to home for Wilson: one of his wife's relatives was sucked out of his tractor by the powerful winds and is currently in hospital. El-Chantiry said crews are being assigned to "yellow" houses — the city is classifying damages to properties as either green, yellow or red, depending on their state of inhabitability — to prevent further destruction from bad weather. Homeowners are urged to contact their personal insurance companies first, then apply for the province's disaster assistance program, Anthony Di Monte, the general manager of Ottawa's Emergency and Protective Services, said Monday. The city's police chief also repeated a plea for people to stay away from the security perimeter. "It's not a secure area," Charles Bordeleau said. He added it's "not showing a lot of compassion" to people suffering losses if non-residents are swarming Dunrobin to take photos.<doc-sep>Share this Story: Egan: A flood, cancer, a tornado — 'we're being tested' Egan: A flood, cancer, a tornado — 'we're being tested' Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News Article content A tornado struck their house, and a terrible thing it was. But nothing like the hurricane that has swept their lives. Nicole Lowden, an Ottawa paramedic, is outside the crisis centre at West Carleton Secondary School, finally eating something after a day of retrieving items scattered to the winds in Friday’s catastrophic tornado in Dunrobin. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Egan: A flood, cancer, a tornado — 'we're being tested' Back to video “Let me show you something.” She pulls out her cellphone camera to illustrate how the storm blew her daughter’s bedroom right out of the house, and mostly knocked her son’s room to bits, the ceiling replaced by sky. “I guarantee you, I can say this without a doubt, my husband saved my life and my son’s life.” Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News And that is but the half of it. Lowden, her husband Brian, and their three children survived the floods at Constance Bay in the spring of 2017, barely keeping the surging Ottawa River from entering the waterfront home on Bayview Drive. If not for shoulder-high sandbags and non-stop pumping, their home of 20 years might have been overwhelmed. But, inside, it stayed dry. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content “We didn’t get water inside the house, but at one point we were completely surrounded.” After the floods, they sold their home, and just weeks before it sold their daughter, now 22, was diagnosed with Stage 2 lymphoma. She has now undergone eight of 12 scheduled chemo treatments and Nicole says the prognosis is good. Had it been any other day, their daughter, who was at a friend’s place, might have been recuperating in her room that Friday during a storm that was strong enough to pick up cars and tear houses in half. She lost all her possessions. Floods, cancer, tornado. What next? “I try to be positive, but it’s getting harder and harder. I really feel like we’re being tested. I’m a God-fearing woman but I’m confused right now.” Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Click here for complete tornado coverage On Sunday, near a swamp, she found her daughter’s pyjamas, then spotted a healing quilt, made by a good friend, hanging in a tree. Standing there, Lowden wraps her fleece a little tighter against a chilling breeze, hugs herself a little, and chokes back a little tear. She has spent a good deal of time this weekend doing the what ifs in her mind. On Friday, afternoon, she arrived home and Daniel, her son, tired from a day of work, was asleep upstairs. Brian, a volunteer firefighter who was doing duty at the Carp Fair, arrived home early because of the severe weather warning. Just as she was shutting windows upstairs against the rain and wind, she heard a scream from downstairs. “I have never,” she said, emphasizing each word, “heard my husband yell in that manner. ‘Get down here right now’.” Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content She said Brian came upstairs, half dragged the groggy-headed Daniel down the stairs and the three of them huddled by the fridge in the kitchen, as the house had no basement. Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News “I’m telling you, that’s the only part of the house that is untouched.” She describes a wild scene on the main floor as Daniel scrambled to find Lola, the blind dog, a six-pound ball of fur. Windows were breaking, splintered lumber was flying through the air, the roof was airborne. And in a couple of minutes, it was all over. Outside, a neighbour’s home was nothing but a ragged foundation. For now, the family is trying to regroup. They were renting the house on Thomas A. Dolan Parkway while waiting for construction to finish on a new home they’ve bought in Constance Bay. (It seems minor by comparison, but they did not have content insurance on their possessions.) Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Lowden, who has slept badly all weekend, is not beyond finding humour in the calamity. “A friend of mine was joking when she said ‘I will never live beside you.’ This is following us. I said to our builder, I feel like this is my fault.” The residents of Dunrobin, who were escorted into their homes on Sunday to retrieve essential items and keepsakes, are a resilient lot. Greg Patacairk is president of the Dunrobin Community Association, a volunteer position. He spent all weekend trying to support his friends and neighbours. “This is definitely not a short-term fix here. We’re looking at weeks and months.” He said he was “overwhelmed” with the response from firefighters and other first responders on Friday night and the outpouring of the community ever since. “Dunrobin will bounce back and it will be rebuilt and we’ll be stronger for it,” he said. “There’s a lot of heartache, but it’s expressed in hope.” The Lowden family, meanwhile, is now looking for rental accommodation until their new home is ready next spring. Nicole is adamant that they all be together. “We’re not being separated, not after all this.” Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News Photo by Jean Levac / Postmedia News Share this article in your social network Latest National Stories Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<doc-sep>Send this page to someone via email Share this item on Twitter Share this item via WhatsApp Share this item on Facebook The Ottawa airport was on backup power and social media lit up with video and photos of damage from a tornado near the nation’s capital on Friday. Environment Canada said a severe thunderstorm produced a tornado that tracked over Kilburn, Dunrobin and Gatineau. WATCH: Video posted to social media on Friday showed dark storm clouds and damage after a storm rolled through the Gatineau and Ottawa areas 0:14 Video shows aftermath of storm near Gatineau and Ottawa Video shows aftermath of storm near Gatineau and Ottawa – Sep 21, 2018 The agency said preliminary analysis of the damages marked it as an EF02 tornado, with winds reaching at least 180 km/h. Story continues below advertisement It caused severe damage to buildings and overturned cars, knocked over trees and hydro poles. The extreme weather came as a line of thunderstorms tracked across southern Ontario. Powerful winds and heavy rain were also seen across Quebec. WATCH: 3 ‘serious’ injuries after tornado touches down in Dunrobin — mayor 1:04 3 ‘serious’ injuries after tornado touches down in Dunrobin: mayor 3 ‘serious’ injuries after tornado touches down in Dunrobin: mayor – Sep 21, 2018 One storm intensified at Calabogie, and it showed the “classic radar signature of a tornado” by the time it arrived in Dunrobin. There were many reports of injuries; several people were hurt critically. ​ Story continues below advertisement Four patients suffered “serious traumatic” injuries in Ottawa and were being treated on Friday night, according to Ottawa Paramedic Service. Two others suffered minor injuries and are currently in local hospitals. #OttawaStorm update: 4 patients suffered serious traumatic injuries, were stabilized by paramedics and are at @OttawaTrauma in serious condition. Two suffered minor injuries and are currently in local hospitals. Several others were treated and released at the scenes. #ottnews — Ottawa Paramedic Svc (@OttawaParamedic) September 22, 2018 WATCH: Gatineau man films video from inside a tornado 1:44 Witness says Gatineau tornado was ‘very quick’ Witness says Gatineau tornado was ‘very quick’ – Sep 21, 2018 The storms knocked out power to as many as 261,000 people in Ontario and Quebec. Story continues below advertisement Hydro Ottawa said at least 147,000 customers were affected by power outages. UPDATE: There are a total of 251 separate outages now in the city affecting at least 147,000 customers. We are working closely with the City and EMS regarding the #OttawaOutage and will be providing updates throughout the night. — Hydro Ottawa (@hydroottawa) September 22, 2018 Meanwhile, Hydro-Québec said over 114,000 customers were without power on Saturday morning. Authorities said on Saturday that it could take days to restore power to Ottawa-area homes due to damage caused to a key Hydro One transformer station. WATCH: Storm clouds were seen swirling over Gatineau, Quebec on Friday as a tornado touched down in the area 0:36 Dark clouds swirl above Gatineau as a tornado touches down in the area Dark clouds swirl above Gatineau as a tornado touches down in the area – Sep 21, 2018 WATCH: Lots of damage left behind after tornado touches down in Dunrobin 1:36 A lot of damage left behind after tornado touches down in Dunrobin A lot of damage left behind after tornado touches down in Dunrobin – Sep 21, 2018 Lynne Lessard, deputy press secretary for International Trade Diversification Minister Jim Carr tweeted this video of a storm swirling in Gatineau. Views from Global Affairs! #Tornado sighting across the river in #Gatineau around 5:15pm. Watch for the fire shortly after I zoom in. Hope everyone is ok! #ONStorm pic.twitter.com/Ux1NBRiKUC — Lynne Lessard (@lynnelessard) September 21, 2018 Story continues below advertisement Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked people to “stay safe and follow the instructions of first responders and check in with people who might need extra help.” WATCH: Trees uprooted, cars damaged as tornado touches down in Gatineau 0:21 Trees uprooted, cars damaged as tornado touches down in Gatineau Trees uprooted, cars damaged as tornado touches down in Gatineau – Sep 21, 2018 “We’re monitoring the situation and thinking of everyone affected.” Here are some photos from Dunrobin that were taken amid the storm. View image in full screen Image taken in Dunrobin after a tornado touched down in the area on Sept. 21, 2018. Mike Le Couteur/Global News View image in full screen Image taken in Dunrobin after a tornado touched down in the area on Sept. 21, 2018. Mike Le Couteur/Global News View image in full screen Image taken in Dunrobin after a tornado touched down in the area on Sept. 21, 2018. Mike Le Couteur/Global News This video, taken by Andrew MacKendrick, director of media relations for Health Minister Jane Philpott, showed a tornado blowing through Gatineau. Story continues below advertisement And this video showed a tornado as the user passed through Dunrobin: Just passed Dunrobin – seemed to travel straight down Thomas Dolan Parkway… (Permission for any news to use – no worries) #ottweather #Ontweather pic.twitter.com/Q7OsOoXJfF — Jon (@_memorable2) September 21, 2018 The Professional Paramedic Association of Ottawa said they responded to 16 calls related to a tornado in the Dunrobin area, about 35 kilometres from Ottawa. Ottawa Paramedics responding to 16 tornado related calls in Dunrobin area – patients trapped in houses – people trapped in basements – patients trapped in cars – power lines down – trauma from debris – secondary trauma from high winds #onstorm#ottnews pic.twitter.com/jF5KqXurkP — OttawaParamedics.ca (@Ottawa_9_1_1) September 21, 2018 The organization said calls concerned people who were trapped in their homes, basements and cars as power lines went down. This is what damage looked like in Dunrobin. These videos showed stormy clouds and damage near Gatineau and Ottawa. These pictures showed power lines down and broader damage in the Greenbank area. Homes were damaged in the Mont-Bleu area of Gatineau. Meanwhile, the Ottawa airport was on backup power on Friday. There were flooded streets in Ottawa’s Glebe neighbourhood. Power’s out in the Glebe, tree branches are down and there is a LOT of water on our street.<doc-sep>Send this page to someone via email The three tornadoes that touched down in the Ottawa-Gatineau region left demolished houses and uprooted trees in their paths and two people with critical injuries Friday night. The twisters packed winds up to 265 km/h. The stronger of the two, which travelled from Dunrobin, Ont., to Gatineau, Que., was classified as an EF-3 storm, while the one that touched down in Arlington Woods, Ont., was an EF-2. The third, which was only identified Monday night, touched down in Calabogie, Ont. with windspeeds of 175 km/h, making it an EF-1 twister. While the Ottawa region is not immune to this type of weather, a storm of this intensity has never occurred there, Global News chief meteorologist Anthony Farnell explained. Story continues below advertisement “What made the setup on Friday particularly dangerous was that a strong ‘fall-like’ storm was interacting with near record summer heat and humidity,” Farnell said. “The timing of the front moving through Ottawa also maximized the amount of heating that occurred during the afternoon giving even more energy to the storms.” The last time a strong EF-3 occurred in Ontario was the Goderich tornado of 2011. The tornadoes moved quickly through their respective neighbourhoods: the Dunrobin-Gatineau tornado was on the ground for almost 40 kilometres and lasted 40 minutes. The other tornado in Arlington Woods headed for Nepean and was on the ground for less than 10 minutes. View image in full screen Damage from a tornado is seen in Dunrobin, Ont., west of Ottawa on Saturday, Sept. 22, 2018. The storm tore roofs off of homes, overturned cars and felled power lines in the Ottawa community of Dunrobin and in Gatineau, Que. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick “These supercell storms were very fast moving, which may be one of the reasons people were caught off guard even with the watches/warnings in place,” Farnell said. Story continues below advertisement “I also think people in residential areas across Canada don’t think that a storm like this could ever occur here. Hopefully, Friday’s storms helped changed people’s mentality.” Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I also think people in residential areas across Canada don't think that a storm like this could ever occur here. Hopefully, Friday's storms helped changed people's mentality." Anatomy of a tornado The tornadoes that touched down in the Ottawa-Gatineau region were supercell tornadoes. According to National Geographic, tornadoes are formed when wind shear (fast-moving winds that roll into a horizontal vortex) is combined with an updraft to create a vertical vortex. This usually occurs during a thunderstorm. A supercell forms from that vertical vortex when you add upper–level winds. Only 30 per cent of supercells become strong enough to form a tornado. But scientists still aren’t sure what gives the supercells an added edge that allows it to form a full-fledged tornado. Story continues below advertisement WATCH: Supercell versus landspout tornadoes 0:29 Supercell vs Landspout Tornado Supercell vs Landspout Tornado – Jun 27, 2018 Another version of a tornado is a landspout. That’s created by heat rising from the surface of the Earth and updrafts. It starts at the ground and can build up towards the cloud, although rarely connecting. These tornadoes are less destructive on average. Climate change and tornadoes The larger tornado, which did extensive damage in Dunrobin and Gatineau, is the latest in a list of weather events in the past 18 months that include devastating storms and floods. Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin said the explanation is plain. “In Gatineau, we’ve suffered a lot, we’re continuing to suffer and one of the main sources of that, it’s clear, is climate change,” Pedneaud-Jobin said, the Montreal Gazette reported Sunday. Story continues below advertisement View image in full screen A building that was damaged after a tornado ripped through Gatineau on Sept. 21, 2018. Facebook/Vincent-Carl Leriche “Are we going to take this threat seriously? It’s not a theory, it’s people who are displaced, people who suffered, people who have lost everything.” WATCH: ‘It’s pretty devastating’: Homeowners in Ottawa speaks about losing home after tornado hits region 2:58 ‘It’s pretty devastating’: Homeowners in Ottawa speaks about losing home after tornado hits region ‘It’s pretty devastating’: Homeowners in Ottawa speaks about losing home after tornado hits region – Sep 23, 2018 Quebec Premier Phillipe Couillard expressed similar sentiments. Story continues below advertisement “You have a living example of a global issue here, which is climate change,” he said Saturday while touring the affected area. “We’re affected by the global phenomenon, what happens on the other end of the planet or south of our border has an impact here.” Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We're affected by the global phenomenon, what happens on the other end of the planet or south of our border has an impact here." While climate change has been linked to extreme weather, it’s not clear yet whether it has an effect on the formation of tornadoes. A 2016 study from Columbia University found that the average number of tornadoes that are part of outbreaks is on the rise. (An outbreak is defined as a large-scale weather event with multiple tornadoes that can last days.) The study said some scientists expect that a warmer climate produces the conditions favourable for a tornado, linking climate change to the cause of the uptick. But study author Michael Tippett also noted at the time that “our usual tools, the observational record and computer models, are not up to the task of answering this question yet.” Another study linked an extended tornado season with climate change – according to Diffenbaugh et. al in the journal PNAS, a simulated change in the atmosphere showed a possible increase of the number of days which supported tornadic storms, though the results were based on a simulation. Story continues below advertisement “The tornado season in Ontario typically lasts from May through September with peak season in June and July,” Farnell explained. “It’s not unheard of but it is unusual to get strong tornadoes in late September.”<doc-sep>
Two days after a powerful twister tore through the rural Ottawa community of Dunrobin, residents got their first chance Sunday to return to their tornado-ravaged homes and assess the damage. The tornado — one of two that touched down in the Ottawa-Gatineau region — graded out at the EF-3 level, meaning it had wind speeds reaching as high as 265 km/h. One of the homes in its path was a 130-year-old former cheese workshop belonging to Laurel Wingrove and Alex Carlson. The pair had been at a wedding when suddenly, right after the ceremony wrapped up, they began getting texts, phone calls and Facetime messages from friends and loved ones in Ottawa. On Sunday, they were back home, checking out the damage and trying to salvage what they could. "We're like, you know what? This is all replaceable," said Wingrove, who was able to find her birth certificate among the debris. "But it's been a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, for sure." Carlson, a volunteer firefighter with the Dunrobin Fire Department, said that if it weren't for the wedding, he likely would have ended up getting called to the scene of his own home's destruction. "It's weird to be on the other end of things," said Carlson, who also ran a small business out of the home. "Obviously it splits you a couple different ways. I'm still thinking [about] a lot of other people, and it's not just us in this boat." A firefighter hands Alex Carlson his laptop, which was recovered from the wreckage of his Dunrobin home. A volunteer firefighter for the local fire department, Carlson might have been called to the scene of his own home's destruction had he not been out of the city at the time. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press) 'And then it passed' The tornado also struck the house that Brian and Nicole Lowden had been renting as they built their permanent home in nearby Constance Bay. They said they'd arrived home just a few minutes before the tornado cut its swath through the neighbourhood. When the winds picked up, Nicole Lowden said, they roused their 21-year-old son out of bed — he'd been working a long construction shift — and tried to get downstairs as quickly as possible. They didn't make it. "Just as we went past the stairs, the door blew open [and] a massive four-by-four came flying through the door," said Lowden, a local paramedic. "My husband had the wherewithal to say 'Let's just crouch down here by the refrigerator.' So we just huddled together. And then it passed." On Sunday, Lowden was out gathering up things that had been blown out of the family's home by the twister — as well as mementos, like a set of ultrasound photos, that belonged to complete strangers. She urged anyone who came across personal items to take them to West Carleton High School, one of a pair of emergency shelters set up after the storm. "Some people are walking away with very little. So please, just take the stuff [there]," she said. "Because you don't know what it means to somebody." Watch Nicole Lowden describe how a tornado destroyed her home in the rural Ottawa community of Dunrobin: Dunrobin residents return to their tornado-ravaged homes CBC News Ottawa 1:58 Nicole Lowden describes how a tornado Friday destroyed her home in the rural Ottawa community of Dunrobin. 1:58 Some were lucky A second tornado — slightly weaker but still devastating — also touched down Friday near Greenbank and West Hunt Club roads. Nicole Lowden was out collecting personal items blown away by the tornado that touched down in Dunrobin on Friday. She urged people to take anything they'd found to West Carleton High School, one of a pair of emergency shelters set up following Friday's storm. (CBC) In all, hundreds of homes in the Ottawa were either partially damaged or completely destroyed by two tornadoes, according to Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson. Paul Loveys was one of the many people displaced by the twisters, and spoke Sunday from the shelter at West Carleton High School about the damage to his home — but also his comparative good fortune. "We were one of the, I'd say, lucky ones in that we were allowed to go back to live in the house. It's been deemed livable," Loveys said. "Our wall's out, there's a hole in the ceiling, a few windows are out. Doesn't sound good but [it's all] relative. Our neighbour's house is completely levelled." Coun.