'We just took cover': Orlans reeling after tornado tears through region

Residents in Ottawa's east end neighbourhood of Orlans are assessing the damage from a major storm Sunday evening that saw a tornado rip through the region.

A single tornado was spotted near the Gatineau airport, just on the other side of the Ottawa River, at 5:55 p.m., Environment Canada said.

The weather agency later said around 8 p.m.that a possible tornado had also been spotted near L'Orignal, Ont., moving east at about 30 kilometres per hour.

"There's no doubt that there was a tornado," meteorologist Alexandre Parent said.

"But regarding its intensity, its precise track, all these different details, we'll have to be on the ground. And these [questions]will be answered tomorrow morning."

The weather agency had placed the city of Gatineau, as well the Papineau, Que., area to the northwest and the municipality of Prescott-Russell, Ont., to the east under a tornado warning as the tornado was moving along the Ottawa River.

All three warnings have now been lifted, although severe thunderstorm warnings remain in place in certain parts of the region.

Damage in Orlans

In Ottawa's Orlans neighbourhood, trees wereuprooted and several homes were damaged by thestorm, fire officials said.

Greg Laidlaw said he was downstairs in hisBalsam Drive home when he suddenly heard the wind pick up.

Then, his neighbour's portable shed slammed into the side of his house.

"We just took cover," he said. "It was kind of scary but it wasn't that bad. I'm sure people got hit worse."

Helena and David Robbhad just sat down to watch TV when the storm hit.

They said when they assessed the damage afterward, they found theyhad no structural damage to their home.

"The trees started to bend and the wind howled," David Robb said. "I didn't know if it was a down draft ... or a tornado, but it sure wreaked its vengeance on us in a short period of time."

River areas hit hard

Ottawa paramedics said they handleda single "minor" call about a branch that fell on a resident's head while they were cleaning up debris.

As of 9 p.m., no major injuries hadbeen reported.

While the tornado's precise track is still being investigated, many Orlansresidents reported seeing it touch down, saidOrlans Coun. Matthew Luloff.

Luloff told CBC Ottawa that he'd seen extensive damage to trees and property,particularly in parts of the ward that sit along the Ottawa River.

However, the damage didn't appear as severe as what happened during theSept. 2018 tornado strikes, Luloff said.

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"[We're] lucky not to see the kind of devastation we saw in Dunrobin," he said.

Highway 174 and Jeanne D'Arc Boulevard had both been closed during the worst of the storm, but they have since reopened.

Other residential streets are impassable due to fallen trees, police said.

The City of Ottawa said there were also reports of power outages and that first responders were performing door-to-door checks in the area.

People with downed trees should call 311, the city said.