What Is It About Ottawa, Canada And Tornadoes Lately?

Tornado around Orleans, Ontario on Sunday. 

Last September, a huge tornado struck the Ottawa, Canada area injuring 25 people, destroying dozens of homes and damaging hundreds of other houses, businesses and apartment buildings

That seemed like a rare event in Ottawa and for the Ontario/Quebec border in general.

Then, yesterday, yet another damaging tornado hit the Ottawa area. This one struck in and around the community of Orleans, a little east of Ottawa. It also came pretty close to the path the one last year took, when it caused extensive damage in Gatineau.  

According to the Ottawa Citizen:

"Environment Canada said late Sunday that preliminary information indicates the tornado was a Category EF-1 and may have been on the ground for more than 30 minutes."

There were no reported injuries, but there was plenty of damage. Videos of the storm and its aftermath are below.

In some neighborhoods, roofs were damaged, windows blew out and scores of trees came down.

Lots of video showed a bright white funnel cloud along the dark tail end of a severe thunderstorm, illuminated by a low angle sun.

Ottawa is just a three and a half hour drive from Burlington, Vermont, but just like the September outbreak, Vermont suffered little if any damage.  There were downpours and thunderstorms in the Green Mountain State, but I've heard no reports of severe thunderstorm.

The severe thunderstorms that produced Sunday's Ottawa area tornadoes moved east toward Montreal but weakened dramatically as they crossed southern Quebec.

Here's a view of the tornado approaching a motorist on a bridge near Orleans. At the last second, the motorist zooms out of the way:



Another view of the tornado pulling water from a lake or river:



And here's the narrow, sun-lit tornado pulling apart part of an apartment house roof:

BREAKING: Ellicott City, Pretty Maryland Town, Being Devastated Now For 2nd Time In 2 Years

Water approaching second floors of downtown Ellicott City, Maryland
today. The second devastating flash flood there in 2 years. 

Two years ago, Ellicott City, a very pretty, historic city in Maryland, was devastated by an enormous flash flood. 

The gorgeous downtown was destroyed, and the city had just now gotten back on its feet.

Tragically, the exact same thing seems to be happening again this afternoon.

A flash flood emergency has been declared there, and this new video just out of Ellicott City looks just as bad as the last one. If not worse.

The Baltimore Sun reports that water has reached the second floor of Portalli's Italian Restaurant, which didn't happen last time. (Portalli's was the source of many of the dramatic videos from the last flood.)  

Downtown Ellicott City, Maryland today 

There have been several water rescues. Trucks and cars are zipping down the main drag, pushed by the floodwaters.

Downstream from downtown, people are reporting cars and pieces of buildings floating by in the raging river.

Severe flash flooding is hitting surrounding areas, too.



Very sad. Here's the video: