THAT WAS SOME STORM ALRIGHT!

Yesterday I discovered just how big that storm (in previous post) really was! Here, from the local radio station's website:

Tornado in Leamington Fri Jun 26th, 2009
Environment Canada says not only did yesterday's storm spawn funnel clouds in Leamington, but in fact it produced a tornado.The weather authority says investigators will be in the town today surveying damage done to a barn on Mersea Road C near Point Pelee.At this point Warning Preparedness meteorologist Geoff Coulson says they believe the twister was an F1, which means winds of between 140 and 160 kilometers (73-112 mph) an hour.Coulson warns this is the prime time of the year for tornado activity and advises people to be on the look out particularly looking towards the southwestern horizon during storms for possible funnels.

This morning I drove out Mersea Road C to see this barn; it's only a couple of minutes drive (gulp!) from my place. If this is the right barn, then it must have been pretty rickety to begin with, the wood looked quite old and weathered, almost as if I'd leaned on it hard I could have done some damage of my own. But even so, there's a whole lot less barn now! I almost wasn't sure I had the right place 'til I drove a bit past it and turned around, where I could see a lot of wreckage strewn behind the house and other nearby structures. And a lovely large willow tree just down the road had some huge branches ripped away.



On my own property, the downed branches are all removed, but there's more to be done. I noticed that the flagpole - which you've seen in some of my lake shots - is now doing a little leaning, too, plus there's a crack (hairline, for now) in the concrete it's embedded in. I think it's going to have to come down, and soon, before the next storm arrives. I kind of wish it had been a big tree branch instead - you know, something easy to take care of. I don't think there's going to be a full page devoted just to "flagpole removal" in the Yellow Pages!

It's rather unsettling to think of a tornado so close by, especially since I live in a "media vacuum." When I get the town's weekly newspaper next Wednesday, I'll learn a bit more, but as for advance warnings, there's no siren in Leamington. The town does have a fledgling TV station, but it's only available on cable, and my semi-rural road doesn't have cable TV access (and likely won't get it). Most of the homes and older cottages already have a satellite dish installed, so it's not a priority for a cable company to go to the expense of setting up for service. I get most of my Doppler weather from the Detroit TV station, but that doesn't really extend much beyond Windsor. I guess I just keep my eyes and ears open. There's no basement here, so I don't suppose there's much to be done except sit in the bathtub with the four cats and hope we don't end up in Oz!!

P.S. Something is going on with my server and/or computer, so it may be a while before I'm able to make my rounds to see you all, but I'll keep trying!