A short but intense storm that blew through Brantford and Brant County on Wednesday downed trees and power lines and dumped significant rainfall.
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But Gerald Cheng, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada, said there is no evidence the area was hit by a tornado, as some have been speculating on social media.
“There were very strong wind gusts up to 83 km/hr,” said Cheng. “It came on quite abruptly, developing on the east side of Brantford and pushing eastward. We don’t always have as long a lead time as winter storm,”
Environment Canada issued a watch for much of Wednesday, forecasting torrential downpours with 50 millimeters of rain falling within an hour and strong winds up to 90 km/hr.
Cheng said the storm developed due to a cold front that swept through the area starting mid-morning through the afternoon.
At about 11:30 am on Wednesday, Brantford Police said they were at the scene of multiple locations with fallen trees and downed power lines and asked people to avoid areas including Colborne Street and Wayne Gretzky Parkway, Third Avenue and Marlborough Street, Park and Sheridan streets and Powell Road and Mercer Avenue.
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Sheri Ojero, a spokesperson for GrandBridge Energy, said there were power outages in three areas of Brantford due to the storm — Park Road North; Harriett Street and Fourth Avenue; and Wayne Gretzky Parkway and Henry Street.
“Our crews worked to safely restore power as quickly as possible,” said Ojero. “An interruption lasting one minute was also experienced in the north end of Brantford due to lightning.”
Ontario is pushing towards its wettest summer on record, with many locations already surpassing their average total of seasonal rainfall. Cheng said thunderstorm season could last late into the year.
“This won’t be the last of it,” he said. “We should be prepared for more of these types of storms. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy life. Don’t hide in a cave. Stay alert to changing conditions and have a plan to seek shelter.”
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