Environment Canada has confirmed that an EF-1 tornado touched down Friday evening in the town of Udney, Ont., about 20 kilometres east of Orillia.
However, they said damage in the City of Orillia was the result of a “downburst” of winds, not a twister.
According to Environment Canada, wind speeds in the Udney tornado on Friday probably reached 135 to 175 kilometres per hour, causing the destruction of a barn, a clubhouse and a shed.
The wind in the Orillia downburst reached at least 110 kilometres per hour and toonie-sized hail was reported. In addition to damaging trees and power lines, a 51-year-old man was taken to hospital after he was found trapped under a fallen tree in Orillia. Orillia city workers were removing the fallen tree when they found the man unconscious.
Though the worst damage was in the Orillia area, severe storms also toppled barns and trees in the London and Windsor areas Friday. In St. Thomas, near London, 124.2 millimetres of rain was recorded as of 10 p.m.
In Six Mile Lake, near the Beausoleil First Nation, where witnesses reported a possible Tornado on Friday, Environment Canada says damage to homes and trees was caused by straight line winds that were likely between 90 and 110 kilometres per hour.
