Ottawa news

• Tornado aftermath: OCDSB and Catholic board announce Monday school closures

  23-09-2018 23:08 via ottawacitizen.com
  Ottawans in Kanata and Nepean who’ve been without electricity since a major storm Friday can hope to have power back by late Sunday afternoon, says a spokesperson for Hydro One.
  The storm, which spawned two tornadoes and did massive damage in western Ottawa and in Gatineau, all but destroyed a major power substation near Merivale and Hunt Club roads, where Ottawa’s municipal power utility plugs into Hydro One’s provincial grid. Major lines serving Kanata and south Nepean have b
  
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• Schools for the Catholic board - and the board office - will be closed Monday. #Ottnews twitter.com/OttCatholicSB/…

  23-09-2018 22:59 via twitter.com
  Schools for the Catholic board - and the board office - will be closed Monday. #Ottnews twitter.com/OttCatholicSB/…
  
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• Ottawa Police ask that people avoid unnecessary travel tomorrow. Chief Bordeleau says if you can work from home to… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

  23-09-2018 22:59 via twitter.com
  Ottawa Police ask that people avoid unnecessary travel tomorrow.Chief Bordeleau says if you can work from home to… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Blackout puts strain on Ottawa Food Bank

  23-09-2018 22:58 via ottawacitizen.com
  The Ottawa Food Bank scrambled to truck food across the city Sunday as widespread power outages dragged into a third day, threatening the food supply of those most in need.
  “The big concern for us is the Ottawa Community Housing residents,” food bank executive director Michael Maidment said. “These are people who struggle to buy food when everything is OK, when there isn’t damage and there is power. The big concern now is that the little food that they are able to provide
  
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• .@hydroottawa adding that crews in the Glebe are waiting on @HydroOne's transmission supply to be restored. #ottnews twitter.com/OttawaMatters/…

  23-09-2018 22:54 via twitter.com
  .@hydroottawa adding that crews in the Glebe are waiting on @HydroOne's transmission supply to be restored. #ottnews twitter.com/OttawaMatters/…
  
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• Ford: The federal government has been a great partner. When it comes to a state of crisis it's amazing how everyone… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

  23-09-2018 22:39 via twitter.com
  Ford: The federal government has been a great partner. When it comes to a state of crisis it's amazing how everyone… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
  
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• Tornado aftermath: The science behind the twisters

  23-09-2018 22:25 via ottawacitizen.com
  They are the most destructive storms on the planet, but tornadoes like the twin twisters that struck Ottawa and Gatineau on Friday are also among the most limited, capable of flattening one home and leaving the neighbour next door virtually unscathed.
  Southern Ontario and the Prairies are the parts of Canada most prone to tornadoes, but, because the twisters tend to be short-lived and very localized, many go unseen and unreported in low population areas. Canada averages about 60 tornadoes a year
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Church sings and prays in parking lot under shadow of damaged roof

  23-09-2018 21:28 via ottawacitizen.com
  Some wiped away tears as members of Arlington Woods Free Methodist Church met in the church’s parking lot Sunday morning to pray and to sing Amazing Grace amid a chorus of chainsaws.
  The church was forced to move its service outdoors after Friday’s tornado ripped much of the roof off the church hall, causing damage estimated in the estimated hundreds of thousands of dollars.
  Barrie Pritchard, a volunteer at Arlington Woods Free Methodist Church, surveys the damage in the main hall, w
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Ottawa police get RCMP backup for Army Run security

  23-09-2018 20:55 via ottawacitizen.com
  The Canada Army Run went off without a hitch Sunday as thousands descended on downtown Ottawa to pound the pavement under the security of Ottawa police and RCMP.
  As half-marathoners raised their arms in celebration while crossing the finish line, Ottawa Police Staff Sgt. Kevin Kennedy, who with other officers was monitoring the event at the police command post, said everything was normal on the security front.
  Runners weren’t used to seeing Mounties and RCMP patrol vehicles on the race rou
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Major power restoration expected in Kanata and Nepean by late Sunday afternoon

  23-09-2018 20:54 via ottawacitizen.com
  Ottawans in Kanata and Nepean who’ve been without electricity since a major storm Friday can hope to have power back by late Sunday afternoon, says a spokesperson for Hydro One.
  The storm, which spawned two tornadoes and did massive damage in western Ottawa and in Gatineau, all but destroyed a major power substation near Merivale and Hunt Club roads, where Ottawa’s municipal power utility plugs into Hydro One’s provincial grid. Major lines serving Kanata and south Nepean have b
  
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• Second woman charged in hotel homicide

  23-09-2018 20:51 via ottawacitizen.com
  A second woman has been charged with first-degree murder for the hotel homicide of Mohamad Mana.
  Homicide detectives announced Sunday that Tamara Bahlawan, 25, had been arrested and charged with first-degree murder. She appeared in court Sunday morning.
  Police released video and a photo of Bahlawan last week taken from the Residence Inn by Marriott hotel, asking for any information to identify the woman. It’s believed that Bahlawan was in the hotel room on Sept. 15 when Mana, 30, was bound
  
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• Ottawa tornado aftermath: Province will 'spare no expense' to help affected areas, Ford says

  23-09-2018 20:49 via ottawacitizen.com
  Premier Doug Ford arrived Sunday to tour an emergency centre set up at West Carleton Secondary School for people affected by the tornado that hit Dunrobin.
  It was Ford’s first public stop Sunday afternoon in Ottawa to see first hand the devastation and assure people the province will help.
  The province will “spare no expense” to help affected areas, Ford said before heading into the high school to talk with people gathered in a makeshift shelter in the gym.
  No one had to sleep
  
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• Inside Hydro One's tricky problem: How to turn on the lights without a major power station

  23-09-2018 20:48 via ottawacitizen.com
  Ottawans in Kanata and Nepean who’ve been without electricity since a major storm Friday can hope to have power back by late Sunday afternoon, says a spokesperson for Hydro One.
  The storm, which spawned two tornadoes and did massive damage in western Ottawa and in Gatineau, all but destroyed a major power substation near Merivale and Hunt Club roads, where Ottawa’s municipal power utility plugs into Hydro One’s provincial grid. Major lines serving Kanata and south Nepean have b
  
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• Storm aftermath: Candle starts fire in out-of-power home in Aylmer

  23-09-2018 20:03 via ottawacitizen.com
  “Inappropriate” use of a candle during the power outage following Friday’s tornado sparked a fire at a semi-detached home in Aylmer on Sunday, Gatineau’s fire service said.
  The blaze at 25 rue Metcalf, in the Parc des Cèdres area, was reported at 7:27 a.m. When the first crews arrived, it had already engulfed the second level of the building.
  The fire was declared under control about 90 minutes later.
  Damage was severe and was estimated at $55,000, a fire service m
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Some Gatineau victims told it could be 10 days before they can return home

  23-09-2018 18:36 via ottawacitizen.com
  Some of the victims displaced by the violent storm that hit in Gatineau on Friday evening say they have been told it could take up to 10 days until they are able to go back home, even if it’s only to get clothes.
  “I don’t know where I am going,” said Michelle Auger, 66, while sitting outside of the CEGEP de L’Outaouais Gabrielle-Roy campus, where hundreds of displaced are being sheltered.
  “All I know is that they are shipping us out of here today because schoo
  
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• Tornado aftermath: What to do if your home or property has been damaged

  23-09-2018 18:08 via ottawacitizen.com
  So, you’ve had property damage, big or small, as a result of Friday’s tornadoes and windstorm. Here’s what to do …
  Contact your insurance company
  The City of Ottawa is advising any residents affected by the tornadoes and storm to contact their insurance companies first and foremost.
  “Most home and business insurance policies cover damage caused by a windstorm or tornado,” the city said. Renters should contact their landlords or property owners and their rente
  
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• With power knocked out to many in the city, many people and restaurant owners were scrambling to save perishable fo… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

  23-09-2018 16:53 via twitter.com
  With power knocked out to many in the city, many people and restaurant owners were scrambling to save perishable fo… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
  
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• Tornado aftermath in Ottawa: Premier expected, thousands in dark, cleanup continues

  23-09-2018 15:36 via ottawacitizen.com
  Crews are making progress in getting the lights back on, but tens of thousands of people in Ottawa, Gatineau and surrounding communities remained without power Sunday, in the wake of a pair of violent tornadoes that tore through the region Friday night.
  Hydro Ottawa said it had 70,000 customers affected by outages Sunday morning, and specifically mentioned major pockets in Barrhaven, Nepean, Lincoln Heights, Richmond and Manordale. Crews have been making progress. At its peak, the
  
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• Photos and video: Tornados rip through Ottawa and Gatineau

  23-09-2018 15:14 via ottawacitizen.com
  The scenes of destruction began to flood social media Friday evening as the region began to pick up the pieces in the wake of a two tornados.
  Those who had been in the middle of it, others who had captured dramatic shots from a safer distance, began to post their photos and video of the dramatic events.
   
  Click here for complete tornado coverage
   Vehicles flattened by fallen trees, homes with roofs ripped off, toppled hydro poles and power lines, there was a steady stream of powerful i
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Barrhaven neighbours rally to feed and help others

  23-09-2018 14:55 via ottawacitizen.com
  Saturday was supposed to be the community association’s annual corn and hotdog boil at the Larkin House Community Centre in Barrhaven.
  Instead, within hours of the lights going out Friday, the event evolved into a plan to feed residents who had lost power — some their homes, too — all day long and at least into Sunday.
  By 8 a.m. Saturday, volunteers were slinging pancakes and pouring coffee. By early evening, more than 3,000 people had received hot meals with hundreds still in
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Premier Doug Ford to tour disaster areas, promises 'resources,' thanks first responders

  23-09-2018 14:50 via ottawacitizen.com
  Premier Doug Ford is expected to arrive Sunday to tour areas hit by Friday night’s tornadoes and storm.
  Ford said he did not come immediately because he did not want to interfere with the emergency response.
  He made the decision after speaking to Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson on Saturday, Ford told CFRA radio in an interview.
  “I asked the mayor, and he felt it’s probably best to let the first responders and emergency services do their job, don’t distract them,” he said.
  &
  
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• Tornado aftermath in Ottawa: Thousands in the dark, as cleanup enters Day 2

  23-09-2018 14:21 via ottawacitizen.com
  Crews are making progress in getting the lights back on, but tens of thousands of people in Ottawa, Gatineau and surrounding communities remained without power Sunday, in the wake of a pair of violent tornadoes that cut a path of destruction through the region Friday night.
  Hydro Ottawa said it had 70,000 customers affected by outages Sunday morning, and specifically mentioned major pockets in Barrhaven, Nepean, Lincoln Heights, Richmond and Manordale. Crews have been making progress.&
  
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• Update from @hydroottawa on power outages. #ottnews twitter.com/hydroottawa/st…

  23-09-2018 14:11 via twitter.com
  Update from @hydroottawa on power outages. #ottnews twitter.com/hydroottawa/st…
  
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• Weather: Perfect conditions for the Army Run

  23-09-2018 13:42 via ottawacitizen.com
  After a cool 5 C start to the morning, it’s looking like a great day for the Army Run. With many traffic light outages snarling traffic over the weekend, you’ll want to know about road closures. These will affect traffic in the area of downtown Ottawa and Hull and the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway. Check out the Army Run site for full details.
  Today will be sunny with increasing cloudiness near noon then a 30 per cent chance of showers late this afternoon. The high will reach 15 C. U
  
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• Gatineau residents explain what happened during Friday's storm, as some witnessed the tornado form and damage homes… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

  23-09-2018 13:09 via twitter.com
  Gatineau residents explain what happened during Friday's storm, as some witnessed the tornado form and damage homes… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
  
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• Firefighters called to Britannia Yacht Club for water rescue

  23-09-2018 13:04 via ottawacitizen.com
  Ottawa firefighters were on scene at the Britannia Yacht Club at 6:30 p.m. Saturday night for a water rescue involving a male in the water in distress.
  When contacted, fire services said the male apparently had “no clothes” and was back on shore, but it had no further details on the situation or his condition.
  
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• Good luck to everyone taking part in the @CanadaArmyRun. It is set to go as scheduled today following the Friday t… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

  23-09-2018 12:48 via twitter.com
  Good luck to everyone taking part in the @CanadaArmyRun.It is set to go as scheduled today following the Friday t… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
  
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• #ottnews #ottstorm twitter.com/OttawaMatters/…

  23-09-2018 12:42 via twitter.com
  #ottnews #ottstorm twitter.com/OttawaMatters/…
  
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• Highway 60 reopens after crash in Algonquin Park

  23-09-2018 05:29 via ottawacitizen.com
  A crash that left a motorcyclist with serious injuries Saturday closed Highway 60 between the east and west gates of Algonquin Park for almost seven hours.
  Killaloe OPP responded to the collision between the motorcycle and a pickup truck near Lake of Two Rivers at 4:09 p.m. Just before 11, police tweeted to say the highway was again open for traffic.
  The cause of the crash was still under investigation, police said, and they couldn’t predict when the roadway would reopen between Dwight and
  
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• One rushed to hospital, two in custody after south-end shooting

  23-09-2018 04:28 via ottawacitizen.com
  One victim was rushed to hospital and police had two suspects in custody after a shooting at a south-end mall Saturday afternoon.
  Police were called to South Keys Shopping Centre at 4:36 p.m.
  They did not release further details.
  Anyone with information was asked to call east district criminal investigations, 613-236-1222 x 3566.
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Province activates disaster help for tornado victims

  23-09-2018 04:14 via ottawacitizen.com
  The provincial government announced Saturday night that it will be activating a program offering emergency help beyond what private insurance covers to people affected by the tornado in Ottawa.
  Individuals, small businesses and not-for-profit organizations that had property damage or loss as a result of the disaster may be eligible for the Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians program, the government said in a release.
  “Our government is going to make sure that the people of Ottawa ar
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Nepean neighbours rally to feed and help others

  23-09-2018 03:01 via ottawacitizen.com
  Saturday was supposed to be the community association’s annual corn and hotdog boil at the Larkin House Community Centre in Barrhaven.
  Instead, within hours of the lights going out Friday, the event evolved into a plan to feed residents who had lost power — some their homes, too — all day long and at least into Sunday.
  By 8 a.m. Saturday, volunteers were slinging pancakes and pouring coffee. By early evening, more than 3,000 people had received hot meals with hundreds still in
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Questions aplenty in Gatineau on Saturday evening

  23-09-2018 02:57 via ottawacitizen.com
  Sara Sahouo had been heading to an Ottawa Senators pre-season game in Kanata with a friend when what turned out to be a tornado passed by the Gatineau bus shelter where she stood.
  “It was just supposed to be a fun Friday evening I had planned for my friend’s birthday, but everything changed so quickly,” said Sahouo, a 20-year-old student at the University of Ottawa.
  Sara Sahouo returned Saturday to the bus shelter on Jumonville Street where she was forced to stay put as the tor
  
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• Crash closes Highway 60 in Algonquin Park

  23-09-2018 02:49 via ottawacitizen.com
  A crash that left a motorcyclist with serious injuries Saturday closed Highway 60 between the east and west gates of Algonquin Park.
  Killaloe OPP responded to the collision between the bike and a pickup truck near Lake of Two Rivers at 4:09 p.m.
  The cause of the crash was still under investigation, police said, and they couldn’t predict when the roadway would reopen between Dwight and Whitney, about 200 kilometres west of Ottawa.
  UPDATE: ROAD CLOSURE: #Hwy60 CLOSED between #Hwy35 #Dwight &
  
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• Tornado aftermath: 'The roof fell on us' — Twisters leave residents awestruck and in the dark

  23-09-2018 02:12 via ottawacitizen.com
  More than 100,000 homes and businesses were still without power Saturday after stunned residents of Ottawa and Gatineau spent the day cleaning up, helping neighbours or simply gazing awestruck at the damage wreaked by two powerful tornadoes that tore through the region Friday night.
  Power was gradually restored throughout the day Saturday, but officials with Hydro Ottawa and Hydro One warned it could be several days before all the lights were back on. At its peak, the outage affected more than 3
  
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• Egan: After breathtaking tornado, Dunrobin awakens to prospect of long, slow recovery

  23-09-2018 01:26 via ottawacitizen.com
  Friday was the day it hit. Saturday was the day it hit home.
  A woman, holding back tears, asked about a lost funeral urn, its irreplaceable ashes tossed in the winds. A man, shaken, described picking shattered glass off a baby next door. A mother raced to the hospital to find her daughter with a punctured lung, crushed by rubble. An elderly man described leaping on his wife as the roof collapsed around them. A man was running out of life-saving medication. Many worried about stranded or lost pet
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Brothers lose homes in Kinburn and Dunrobin within minutes

  23-09-2018 01:22 via ottawacitizen.com
  The Nicholson brothers are a close-knit bunch.
  There are four of them. They live within 30 minutes of one another west of Ottawa.
  On Friday, two of them lost their homes within minutes of each other when a devastating tornado ripped through the capital.
  When the storm hit around 5 p.m. on Friday, Jason Nicholson, his wife Jolene Dickson and their three sons, aged 7, 9, and 11, were at the Carp Fair, where Dickson is the past president.
  They got a call from their neighbour, Brenda Gibson. Better
  
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• Firefighters called to Brittania Yacht Club for water rescue

  23-09-2018 00:32 via ottawacitizen.com
  Ottawa firefighters were on scene at the Brittania Yacht Club at 6:30 p.m. Saturday night for a water rescue involving a male in the water in distress.
  When contacted, fire services said the male apparently had “no clothes” and was back on shore, but it had no further details on the situation or his condition.
  
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• A whirlwind romance: Ottawa couple tie knot in tornado-darkened ceremony

  23-09-2018 00:22 via ottawacitizen.com
  Many a young couple has tied the knot with storm clouds on their horizon, but the circumstances of newlyweds Ryan and Kaitlyn Flett were more literal than most.
  On Friday, the Ottawa couple were getting ready to take formal photos before their wedding ceremony in Carleton Place when their cellphones, and those of everyone around them, started buzzing.
  It was an emergency warning about the looming tornado approaching the region.
  “We were a little worried then,” Ryan said.
  But the 27-y
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Quarry housing co-op cleans up after roofs ripped off, trees uprooted

  23-09-2018 00:07 via ottawacitizen.com
  At the Quarry Co-op on Saturday morning, residents were out surveying damage from the intense storm that blew through Friday night, ripping roofs off buildings and sheering trees in half.
  “We started cleaning up right away,” said co-op board president Linda Poulsen. “There was a truck right here and I hired him on the spot.”
  As it happened, on Friday a tree removal company was in the area. The driver pulled in to the co-op at the height of the storm as trees were being ri
  
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• Tornado aftermath: Gatineau family of eight, with another on the way, faces uncertainty

  23-09-2018 00:00 via ottawacitizen.com
  Daniel Dorris was working on a construction site in Ottawa late Friday afternoon and hadn’t had a chance to check his phone for a while.
  So he was pretty shook up when he saw four missed calls from his wife, Natasha Picard, in Gatineau.
  “My wife’s pregnant, so my mind went there,” Dorris, a stocky guy with a Mohawk haircut, said with his wife and six kids outside an emergency centre set up for storm victims at the CEGEP de Gatineau.
  When Dorris finally got in touch with P
  
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