Extreme weather

Hydro crews working to restore power in Toronto after 'catastrophic' ice storm

A freezing rain warning has ended for the city of Toronto, but city officials are warning that there may be more damage to come following an overnight ice storm that's left more than 250,000 residents without power.

CTV,

22 December, 2013

Toronto Hydro confirmed that there are more than 250,000 customers without power, mostly through the mid-town corridor of the city. Toronto Hydro said it may be up to 72 hours before power is fully restored.

At a news conference Sunday afternoon, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford told reporters that the city is not in a state of emergency, but an emergency could be called if the weather conditions worsen over the next 24 hours.

Ford said the storm was one of the worst in Toronto's history, and a number of community centres are being turned into warming centres with food, water and heat for residents in need.

Community centres open are:

Dennis R. Timbrell Centre - 29 St. Denis Drive (Eglinton/Don Mills)

Malvern Community Centre - 30 Sewells Rd. (Neilson/Finch)

Agincourt Community Centre - 31 Glen Walford Rd. (Sheppard/Midland)

Northwood Community Centre - 15 Clubhouse Court (Finch/Jane)

Mitchell Field Community Centre - 89 Church Avenue (Yonge/Finch)

Joseph P Piccinini Community Centre - 1369 St. Clair Avenue W. (St. Clair/Keele)

News release: City of Toronto experiencing widespread power outages

Ford also urged city residents to check on elderly friends, family members and neighbours to make sure they're safe.

The mayor said 20 Toronto Community Housing buildings were without power, and he asked those residents with power to reach out to those in need.

Toronto Hydro CEO Anthony Haines told CP24 that the "catastrophic" ice storm was one of the worst Toronto Hydro has seen, adding that Toronto Hydro considers it an emergency.

Haines said crews are working round the clock to restore power, but with ice-covered tree branches pulling down power lines, and slippery road conditions, the process is slow.

To make matters worse, high winds are expected later Sunday, which could cause even more power outages.

"The damage is not yet done," he said, noting that additional power lines could come down in the next 12 hours.

Haines said hydro crews will first work on clearing any downed wires to make the streets safe. Next, power will be restored to major hospitals and water plants, which are currently operating on backup generators. Crews will then attend to residential neighbourhoods.

He said that residents without electricity should consider bunking with friends and family who do. He also suggested residents run their taps for a few minutes to help prevent freezing in their pipes.

Haines said crews will be working non-stop to have the city reconnected, recognizing that Christmas is just around the corner. "We will be working as quickly and safely as we can," he said.

Toronto residents can report downed wires by calling 416-542-8000.

Just outside of the city, over 60,000 customers are without power in Vaughan, Markham, Thornhill and Richmond Hill, according to PowerStream.

Out west, in Mississauga, around 2,400 customers are without power, Enersource told CP24.

The freezing rain warning ended for Toronto shortly after 1 p.m. ET., but Environment Canada is forecasting Northeast winds picking up later in the day, with gusts of up to 50 kilometres per hour.

TTC service impacted

Shortly before 7 a.m. on Sunday, the TTC announced that streetcars would not be running due to icy power lines. Service on the Scarborough RT has also been suspended, with buses running between Kennedy and McCowan instead.

The TTC also tweeted several service disruptions along the Bloor-Danforth and Yonge-University and the Sheppard subway lines.

There is no word yet on when full TTC service will resume. Continue checking the TTC Twitter account and website for continuous updates.

GO train service resumes on Lakeshore East Line

After service was suspended on the GO Transit Lakeshore East line throughout the morning Sunday, trains started running again at approximately 12:30 p.m.

OPP urges caution on the roads

Police are asking residents to stay off the roads unless it's absolutely necessary to drive.

"If you don't need to go out there, please don't," Sgt. Kerry Schmidt told CTV News Channel on Sunday. He said if drivers do take to the roads, should drive according to the weather conditions. "Most importantly, slow down," he said.

Outages across southern Ontario

Electricity is also out for approximately 90,000 Hydro One customers across southern Ontario.

Marylena Stea from Hydro One told CTV News Channel that most of the outages are the result of ice-covered tree branches pulling down power lines.

She said hydro crews are being slowed down by the "treacherous" driving conditions, but Hydro One hopes to have power restored to most customers by the end of today. Customers can keep track of estimated restoration times by checking the Hydro One website or by downloading the app, she said.

If residents come across a downed power line, they should stay away from it and report it to Hydro One by calling 1-800-434-1235, she said.

Weather in the US

Ice and snow on one side of the front, flooding and severe on the other side. Here's a look at the U.S. storm reports since midnight

Wintry weather threatens Christmas travel chaos across Britain

Met office issues severe weather warning with heavy rain and gales on the way as bookies slash odds on white Christmas

the Guardian,

22 December, 2013

Torrential rain and heavy gales are threatening to create a hazardous Christmas getaway in many parts of Britain, forecasters have warned.

Gusts will reach up to 90mph in some areas on Monday and Christmas Eve, as heavy rainfall sweeps into south Wales and the south-east of England.

But the wintry showers have increased the possibility of a white Christmas in parts of Britain, with odds slashed in cities including Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester.

The Met Office issued a severe weather warning from dawn on Monday and advised travellers to brace themselves for chaos on the roads and rails.

"There is scope for very heavy rain, potentially some localised flooding, and strong winds in some areas so there is a risk of travel disruption," said Calum MacColl, forecaster with the Met Office.

An amber alert for rain was issued for south Wales and parts of southern England on Sunday, with conditions expected to worsen over the next 24 hours due to a low-pressure weather system swept in from across the Atlantic.

"[Monday] will start quite nicely in some places, but there will soon be heavy outbreaks of rain in the south-west of England and south Wales," said MacColl. "That will quickly move into the north-east, and it will bring gales with it."

Forecasters expect gales of 50-60mph across Britain, with gusts of 70mph on southern coastal routes in England, reaching up to 90mph in north-west Scotland.

"Once the weather sets in, it will be staying all day," MacColl said. "The worst areas will be the south-west of England, particularly on higher ground."

The Highways Agency on Sunday issued an amber alert in the east, south-east and south-west of England, urging drivers of high-sided vehicles including caravans to avoid a number of the main getaway routes.

John McTaggart, head of on-road services at the Highways Agency, said: "Road users are urged to check traffic and weather conditions before setting out on journeys and to heed any advice such as speed restrictions once they are on the strategic road network.

"Be aware of sudden gusts of wind, and give high-sided vehicles, caravans, motorbikes and bicycles plenty of space. In the event of persistent high winds we may need to close certain bridges to traffic for a period, so please be alert for warnings of closures and follow the clearly signed diversion routes."

Heavy snowfall is expected in central Scotland and the nothern mountains, although bookmakers have cut the odds on flakes falling elsewhere in the UK as temperatures fall on Christmas Day.

Bookmaker William Hill has odds of 2/1 that at least one snowflake will fall in Aberdeen, Glasgow or Edinburgh. Punters have also put money on a white Christmas in Belfast and Dublin, both at 4/1, and the odds of snow in London halved over the weekend to 5/1.

"Before the weekend we'd all but written off a white Christmas off but the last 48 hours have seen the biggest snow gamble for ages," said Alex Donohue of Ladbrokes.

Rail passengers were advised to check for disruption before they travel. East Coast, the main line connecting cities between London and Edinburgh, warned some trains may be delayed or cancelled because of the stormy weather.

Virgin Trains advised passengers planning to travel in the afternoon or evening on Monday to catch earlier trains, saying delays were likely. Another operator, First Hull Trains, said Network Rail was likely to impose speed restrictions on trains to and from London throughout Monday.

Record rainfall in Toronto

Record rains cause heavy flooding in Toronto area

Toronto’s subway lines, as well as numerous traffic lights and street lights went out across the city during a massive thunderstorm

Globe and Mail,

8 July, 2013

Environment Canada said some parts of the GTA had been drenched with more than 100 millimetres of rain, trouncing the previous one-day rainfall record of 29.2 mm in 2008 for Toronto and even beating the 74.4 mm monthly average for July.

Water from flash flooding poured out of sewer drains while Toronto’s downtown core was dotted with abandoned vehicles, some sitting in water up to their windows. One woman, sporting a T-shirt and shorts, dove head-first through the window of her marooned car before wading away in the thigh-deep currents.

Mayor Rob Ford encouraged people to stay inside their homes where possible, except to check on the vulnerable, elderly, or those who may not be able to cope on their own.

He said the city is taking an “all hands on deck” approach to dealing with the “serious situation” caused by the first round of storms. He said civic officials are bracing for the second round now nearing the western end of the GTA.

He asked Toronto residents not to call 911 unless it’s a dire emergency because the line is getting overwhelmed. He urged people to contact 311 for information updates.

Toronto Hydro reported approximately 300,000 customers were without power across Toronto as of 7:30 p.m. Monday.

Milly Bernal, a spokeswoman for the Toronto Transit Commission said that some stations are flooded and some are operating with emergency lights.

Ms. Bernal said Yonge-University-Spadina line is closed from Downsview station to St. Clair, St. Andrew to Bloor, and from Lawrence to Finch. The Bloor line has been shut down from Jane to Kipling, and the entire Sheppard line is out of service.

Porter Airlines has cancelled all Toronto flights for the rest of the day because of the storm and power outages at the airport. The airline tweeted that passengers will be accommodated on flights tomorrow, and that high call volumes are causing longer than average wait times at their call centre.

Between 30 and 40 millimetres of rain had fallen by 6:15 p.m. with another 10 to 15 expected this evening, Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong said, based on reports from the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.

“We are receiving significant reports of basement flooding,” Councillor Minnan-Wong said. Underpasses in the downtown are also flooded, he said.

Road closures include the Don Valley Parkway between Bloor Street and the Gardiner and Allen Road northbound at Eglinton, he said.

Mobile phone and text service was down for numerous Rogers and Fido customers in the region Monday night, making it difficult for many caught in the storm to reach loved ones. Rogers spokesperson Patricia Trott confirmed that the service interruption was related to the severe weather battering the area, but could not confirm the number of people affected by the outage. "We apologize to our customers and are working to fix the problem as soon as possible," she said. Mobilicity customers also reported outages.

Pockets of the downtown core were also rife with gridlock, as many intersections, including in the Queen-Bathurst area, had no police on hand to direct traffic.

Small, street-level retail businesses, many lacking the backup power afforded by larger companies, faced some of the worst consequences of the outages.

Jeff Caires, owner of the Tequila Bookworm restaurant and bar at Queen Street West and Portland Street, said he hadn't seen rain so bad in the more than seven years he'd been at the location.

"I've never seen anything like this," Mr. Caires said. While the basement wasn't flooded, he said the shop's backyard was.

While some power was restored in the area at about 7:30 p.m., there were still some stretches affected further west downtown, including on Queen Street near Trinity Bellwoods Park. The park's off-leash "dog bowl" section, located near a ravine, had turned into a veritable lake with water nearly a foot deep in some places.

"We're currently facing significant system issues," said Andrea Corkum, a Hydro spokesperson. "There are so many outages everywhere."

All of Toronto Hydro's crews are currently out making repairs and they will likely work throughout the night, focusing on the largest outages first, according to Ms. Corkum.

GO Transit spokeswoman Vanessa Thomas said that flooding on train tracks is affecting trains between Toronto Union Station and Richmond Hill.

TTC chair Karen Stintz posted a photo on Twitter showing ankle-deep water in Queen's Park subway station saying "thank you for your patience. TTC is working hard."

Reached late Tuesday night Councillor Doug Ford said he directed traffic for four hours in Etobicoke. "Absolutely," he said in a message. "Everyone was helping."

Anthony Farnell @AnthonyFarnell

Unofficial report from #YYZ Pearson Airport of 123mm of rain so far today making it the wettest day EVER recorded. #Toronto #TOflood

2:20 PM - 9 Jul 2013

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See also - Toronto Power Down As Torrential Rain Hits Region