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Arborists, city clean-up crews and hydro repair workers were busy in Owen Sound Friday dealing with the aftermath of a severe storm that knocked over trees, downed hydro lines, and caused extensive property damage in some areas.
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As of Friday morning, there were no storm-related injury reports according to Owen Sound police.
Much of the damage appeared to be in the city’s northeast where trees toppled over at the bottom of St. Mary’s hill. Crews worked at the Duncan McLellan ballpark where fallen trees crushed several sections of chainlink fence.
Near the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre, arborists worked in the backyard of a home to remove a large tree that had snapped and fallen on top of a deck and motorcycle.
Work was also being done by arborists behind the Blue Water Curling Club where it appeared a tree had fallen toward the structure and was leaning against an exterior wall and the roof of the building.
Environment Canada issued a severe thunderstorm warning for much of Grey County and the Bruce Peninsula Friday evening while tracking a storm capable of producing up to 100 kilometre-per-hour wind gusts and large hail.
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Environment Canada also warned of potential water spouts forming on Georgian Bay due to the storm activity and issued a tornado warning for parts of the Bruce Peninsula.
Meanwhile, an independent and community-driven weather group called Ontario Storm Watch, said on its Facebook page that it had detected tornado potential in the area just after 7 p.m. while tracking a storm moving east along Georgian Bay toward Meaford.
On Friday, a spokesperson from Environment Canada said a storm producing 100 kilometre-per-hour winds moved down from Wiarton to the Owen Sound and south Georgian Bay areas. Still, as of Friday afternoon, there were no confirmed tornadoes in the province. The spokesperson said it appeared that isolated pockets of severe storm activity and high winds caused downed trees and power lines throughout the province Thursday evening. Environment Canada said it will continue to monitor public media and damage reports.
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The Northern Tornadoes Project — an organization founded by Western University which aims to detect, study and document all tornadoes in Canada — said an investigation team was en route to Owen Sound Friday after receiving reports of wind damage in the area. A request for comment wasn’t immediately returned Friday.
Hydro One said just over 1,300 customers remained without power in the area Friday morning as crews worked through the night to repair several downed power lines.
High winds toppled trees and power poles, knocking out power to large swaths of the city Thursday night. Hydro One said crews from other parts of the province were dispatched to Owen Sound and most of the city was expected to have power returned Friday.
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A Hydro One spokesperson reminded residents to always stay at least 10 metres away from downed hydro lines and report occurrences to 911 immediately.
On Friday morning, Owen Sound director of public works Lara Widdifield said in a public notice city workers continued to clean up debris from the high winds and heavy rains Thursday night.
Public works and parks staff worked to clean the most severely damaged areas while prioritizing debris that posed a hazard. The city thanked the public for its patience.
City staff also said city parks may be impacted while the clean-up effort is underway. Any affected bookings will be dealt with directly, staff said.
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