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CBC
2 days ago
- Climate
- CBC
Saturday storms produced three tornadoes near Goderich, tornado researchers confirm
3 eyewitness videos show storm, suspected tornado in southwestern Ontario 1 day ago Duration 1:29 A strong supercell thunderstorm that crossed parts of southwestern Ontario on Saturday produced three separate tornadoes in the span of an hour, researchers with Western University's Northern Tornadoes Project confirmed Monday. All three tornadoes spawned between 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday near Goderich as the storm system came ashore from Lake Huron. The first tornado occurred on the lake as a waterspout, about 14 kilometres northwest of Bayfield, according to coordinates provided by Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP). "Then it weakened a bit, and once it got on shore, it started producing a tornado again at Porter's Hill ... then it intensified again and produced another tornado further inland near Harlock," said David Sills, NTP's director. The three tornadoes produced minor damage on land, and have been classified as EF-0 in strength, the weakest rating on the enhanced Fujita scale. No injuries have been reported, Sills said. NTP conducted a ground and drone survey of the area on Sunday to document damage and to chart the paths of the two land tornadoes. "The one bit of structural damage we know about from the tornado near Porter's Hill was a structure that had its roof peeled back," along Sharpes Creek Line, Sills said. Damage to a coverall building and to trees was also reported. That twister had wind speeds of at least 124 km/h, and travelled 6.24 kilometres with a maximum path width of 190 metres, he said. "The other tornado that hit Harlock was really impressive visually, but only produced weak damage — basically 90 km/h, a few tree branches broken," he said. It travelled nearly 4.7 kilometres with a maximum path width of 330 metres. CBC News spoke with several residents on Sunday who recalled there being a calm before the storm's quick arrival. "We sat down to have dinner, and all of a sudden my mom was like, 'You need to get to your safe place,'" said Deobrah Caira who lives near Blyth in the area where the third tornado touched down. "I said, 'It's all clear and sunny outside.' Sure enough, I looked outside, and I saw this cloud formation rotating, coming toward us." A short time later, the family took cover in the home's centre hallway as the tornado ripped by their property. "The doors were shaking on their hinges. The whole house was shaking," Caira said. The passing tornado dissipated through a field behind the family's property, but not before it damaged a 150-year-old tree and tossed Caira's roadside vegetable stand down the driveway. "There was a bit of confusion ... because there was a large marine tornado warning issued as the tornado over the lake was happening. I think quite a few people on shore got that warning," Sills said. "But as the tornado moved onshore, there didn't appear to be a tornado warning issued then. When it came on shore, I don't think there was any warning or watch in effect, at that point." The three tornadoes followed an EF-1 rated downburst that occurred in Mitchell on Thursday which damaged several barns, power pole, trees, and crops.
CBC
3 days ago
- Climate
- CBC
'The whole house was shaking,' Huron County woman recalls close call with tornado
Parts of Huron County received a chilling reminder of nature's destructive power on Saturday evening after a possible tornado blew through part of the region between Bayfield and Goderich. On Sunday, residents and visitors in the area who witnessed the storm told CBC News they were simultaneously shocked and amazed by the event. Deborah Caira had a front row seat to the chaos, but said the calm before the storm was one of the most surprising parts of her experience. "We sat down to have dinner, and all of a sudden, my mom was like, 'You need to get to your safe place.' I said, 'It's all clear and sunny outside,'" Caira said. "Sure enough, I looked outside, and I saw this cloud formation rotating, coming toward us." Jun. 30 tornado touched down in Lucan, north of London Multiple businesses and locals near the tornado's path reported a similar calm, with some not even knowing about the event until hours later. Environment Canada said preliminary reports suggest the twister, which has not yet been assigned a severity rating, formed over Lake Huron before making landfall. An initial tornado warning was issued for the marine region shortly after 6 p.m., and the tornado made landfall closer to 7 p.m., a meteorologist said. Barely more than half an hour later and 27 kilometres from the lake's shoreline, Caira was caught in what looked like it could be a fight for her life. "We got inside, and probably two minutes later, it hit us, and I mean it hit us. The doors were shaking on their hinges. The whole house was shaking. It felt like it was over 100 kilometres an hour," Caira said, noting her home near Blyth, Ont., does not have a basement. "We took cover in the centre hallway in the house, and within a minute it was over." After the tornado passed, Caira said she watched it rip into a field behind her property before dissipating. The tornado caused serious damage to trees on the property, but left her house mostly unscathed. "We were just blown away with the size of the [tree] limbs that were down throughout our backyard and behind our house. It looks like it cut right across the corner of our property, and tossed my vegetable stand, which is probably four or 500 pounds, into the driveway, face down," Caira said. The vegetable stand, which she sells produce from, landed centimetres away from her vehicle. The tornado also destroyed a 150-year-old maple tree nearby, she said. Nearby Goderich, as well as other parts of Huron County, were the site of an intense tornado in 2011 that killed one person, injured 37, and caused $130 million in damages. That, and other historic tornadoes in the region, mean Caira and her neighbours are aware of what can happen, and are thankful it wasn't worse, she said. Powerful tornado kills man in Goderich, Ontario On its way to what could have been its final stopping point near Caira's property, the tornado hit a local campground, according to a representative from the business. The extent of the damage it caused is unclear. Closer to the shoreline, Niagara region videographer Tom Elgersma was on his way to visit family members in Goderich when he saw what looked like a funnel cloud. He pulled over to film it, and captured what appears to be a tornado weakening, almost dissipating, and then roaring back to life. "You're standing there, in awe, filming it, and you're also trying to keep in mind that it could change direction and start coming toward you," Elgersma said, calling the experience terrifying but fascinating all at once. His video was among dozens of pieces of media posted to social media groups designed to document and warn of extreme weather events as they're happening. People in the region have come to depend on the groups for information, especially since official tornado warnings sometimes come after the tornado itself has dissipated. "I think [these groups are] a good idea. They can give people updated situations and information from people who are on the ground," he said. Currently, a team from Western University's Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP) is investigating the tornado with the hope of documenting it, determining its path and giving it an EF rating, which is determined by how much damage it caused. It's not the only severe weather event in this corner of Ontario in the past few days. The NTP recorded an EF-1 downburst in Mitchell, in the Municipality of West Perth, which happened on Thursday. The Mitchell downburst, the NTP's official notes say, damaged several barns, power poles, trees and crops. It had an estimated maximum wind speed of 150 km/h.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Climate
- CTV News
Tornado forms in Huron County
It appears a tornado touched down between Goderich and Clinton Saturday evening. Multiple pictures and videos of a funnel cloud were shared with CTV News. While there have been no reports of injuries or extensive building damage, there are reports of trees down at a farmhouse near Holmesville, and trees down at Shelter Valley Campground near Holmesville. There was a Marine Tornado Warning along the Lake Huron shoreline, centred around Goderich around 6:45 p.m. Around 7 p.m., funnel clouds were spotted inland between Goderich and Clinton.
CTV News
23-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Women's shelter in Goderich receives almost $600k from Ontario government
The emergency shelter at Huron Women's Shelter Second Stage Housing and Counselling Services. (Source: Huron Women's Shelter Second Stage Housing and Counselling Services) On Wednesday, the provincial government announced a $45 million investment to support community non-profit organizations. One of these organizations is the Huron Women's Shelter Second Stage Housing and Counselling Services, located in Goderich. The shelter, which supports women and children impacted by gender-based violence, is receiving just under $600,000 over the next three years to introduce an innovative housing model. The funding is provided through the Ontario Trillium Fund, and will support 140 non-profit organizations, Indigenous communities and small municipalities. Along with the women's shelter, other recipients include Durham Youth Housing and Support Service, Food for Life in Halton Region and YMCA of Three Rivers at Camp Belwood. To receive the grants, non-profit organizations can apply for grants of $100,000 to $600,000 over two to three years. The grants are used to improve, expand or adapt an existing program or service. Stan Cho, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Gaming said it's vital to help non-profit groups benefit communities across the province. 'Whether it's helping seniors stay physically active and learn new skills or connecting young people to their communities through the arts, non-profit organizations across Ontario deliver programs and services that make a real difference in people's lives,' said Cho.
CTV News
17-07-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Huron County veterans embark on ‘Ruck March' to raise awareness of first responders' PTSD
Mark Morse, a 16-year military veteran from Goderich and Chris Fedorko, a 13-year OPP member from Exeter, are doing a 66 kilometre 'ruck march' from Goderich to Ipperwash on August 30th, to raise awareness of the struggles and lack of supports for military veterans and first responders suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder and operational stress injury, that often leads to death by suicide. July 17, 2025. (Scott Miller/CTV News London) Chris Fedorko used to patrol the roads of Huron County as an OPP officer, but everything changed six years ago. 'In 2019, I was involved in a traumatic incident at work. I took some time off, went back and two years ago, I was finally diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. And I've been off work since, and I struggle with PTSD every day,' said the 13-year OPP veteran from Exeter. Fedorko has found a confidante and friend in Mark Morse. The 16-year military veteran from Goderich helps veterans and first responders around the world through grassroots online support groups. 'PTSD and OSI (operational stress injury) is very, very misunderstood and how it affects people and families. So it's a matter of at the grassroots level, we're working with each other to, to keep each other alive. It's just that simple,' said Morse. But sometimes it doesn't work. Morse says 22 military veterans die by suicide each day, 51 OPP officers have died by suicide and 36 per cent of all first responders, like police, firefighters and paramedics, will develop post traumatic stress disorder and be unable to work because of it. 'Sometimes you just kind of have to shut your brain off, and just deal with what's in front of you. And then afterwards, I mean, they do debriefs every now and then, but the support needs to be increased for us. It just needs to be better handled. And then we'll have less suicides, and less people struggling and less people off work,' said Fedorko. 071725 Mark Morse, a 16-year military veteran from Goderich and Chris Fedorko, a 13-year OPP member from Exeter, are doing a 66 kilometre 'ruck march' from Goderich to Ipperwash on August 30th, to raise awareness of the struggles and lack of supports for military veterans and first responders suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder and operational stress injury, that often leads to death by suicide. July 17, 2025. (Scott Miller/CTV News London) On August 30, Morse and Fedorko will carry 66 pound army packs on their backs for 66 kilometres from Goderich to Ipperwash to raise awareness about the struggles facing military veterans and first responders. They'll also raise money for CanPraxis, a Canadian equine therapy program, that works specifically with those struggling on the front lines. 'It's very difficult counseling. It's a hard look at yourself, your issues and your triggers. So they work at teaching you how to communicate as a family about the emotions, the issues, the triggers and how to work through them. And this is all done around horses. Horses feed on human emotion better than any other animal, and it helps people relax and helps bring the conversation forward,' said Morse. The first ever Morse Memorial March is in honour of Morse's cousin, a veteran who lost his battle with PTSD in 2016, and two other veteran friends of Morse, who also died by suicide. The 66 pound packs for 66 kilometres is the combination of those three deaths, multiplied by the 22 veterans who die by suicide each day. 071725 Mark Morse, a 16-year military veteran from Goderich and Chris Fedorko, a 13-year OPP member from Exeter, are doing a 66 kilometre 'ruck march' from Goderich to Ipperwash on August 30th, to raise awareness of the struggles and lack of supports for military veterans and first responders suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder and operational stress injury, that often leads to death by suicide. July 17, 2025. (Scott Miller/CTV News London) 'People look at the emergency first responders and veterans as a bit of a different breed of people, right? We've always got to be strong, right? Well, when push comes to shove, we're human beings. And every day, police, soldiers, veterans, we see things that are unbelievable, and it builds on us,' said Morse. 'You put your uniform on, and you think that you're untouchable. I think people should know that we struggle, because if nobody knows I'm struggling, then nobody can help me deal with what I'm dealing with,' says Fedorko. The first annual Morse Memorial March leaves Goderich, August 30th.
