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Severe flooding as month’s worth of rain hits Toronto in less than 3 hours, Canada

severe-flooding-as-month-s-worth-of-rain-hits-toronto-in-less-than-3-hours-canada

Environment Canada issued a special weather statement for Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton at around 21:00 EDT on Tuesday, August 7, 2018, ahead of a slow-moving area of tropical moisture-fueled rain showers.

Parts of Toronto experienced widespread flash flooding shortly after as rain quickly overwhelmed drainage systems. Highways 400 and 401, the area near Allen Road, the downtown core and the Toronto Islands were the worst affected.

According to EC, approximately 50 to 75 mm (1.9 – 2.9 inches) of rain fell in the span of two to three hours across parts of the city but some areas received more than 100 mm (3.93 inches), which is more than the city receives during the entire month of August (average: 78.1 mm (3 inches)). However, many areas of Toronto received much less than 22 mm (0.86 inches) of rain, showing the very localized nature of the heavy shower.

Toronto Hydro said around 22:00 EDT they had lost their power supply from Hydro One and subsequently 16 000 customers lost power in the area of Finch Station and Steeles, Sheppard and Islington avenues. Power was restored to approximately 8 000 customers at around 22:30 EDT.

Toronto Police said it responded to a number of vehicles stuck in water throughout the city, including one case of two men being trapped in a rapidly-filling elevator.

Featured image credit: Kyle Koch

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