30/05/2005 - Summer is
on the way and, when it comes to weather,
expect the unexpected! One minute it can be
sunny and beautiful; the next, a thunderstorm
can form, bringing with it intense lightning,
heavy rain, damaging hail and even tornadoes.
On May 31st 1985, the City of Barrie, Ontario
was hit by one of the most powerful and devastating
tornadoes ever recorded in Canada. More than
800 people were left homeless, 60 seriously
injured and eight dead. In addition, a separate
tornado generated from another thunderstorm
called the Grand Valley Tornado killed 4 additional
people, 2 in Grand Valley and 2 in Tottenham.
Environment Canada, Emergency Management
Ontario and the City of Barrie are making
a joint effort to promote public awareness
of the importance for Canadians to protect
themselves against the results of these types
of high-impact weather events. The goal is
to enhance awareness of risks, consequences
and potential strategies to ensure Canadians
are better prepared to protect their families
and properties.
While we can't control the weather, we can
control what we do to prepare for it. Watching
the sky and knowing what to do during an extreme
weather event can help to save lives and protect
personal property.
"Being prepared can mean the difference
between life and death," says Geoff Coulson,
one of Environment Canada's Warning Preparedness
Meteorologists for Ontario. "Staying
tuned to Environment Canada's forecast and
warning information and taking a few simple
steps can ensure that Ontario's summers are
enjoyable and safe."
"Emergency Management Ontario is committed
to building 'disaster-resilient' communities
by means of the development of comprehensive
emergency management programs throughout the
province, building on the principles of mitigation,
prevention, preparedness, response and recovery,"
said Ernest Hills, EMO Community Officer for
the Georgian Sector of Ontario. "While
we cannot eliminate the reality of extreme
weather events, through a comprehensive emergency
management program - in situations like the
1985 Barrie tornado - we can hope to minimize
the risk to life, reduce damage to property
and, where events occur,return people as quickly
as possible to enjoying the quality of life
communities provide."
"The 1985 tornado is not a distant memory
for us, even though it was 20 years ago,"
says Cynthia Ross Tustin, Assistant Chief
and Manager of Fire Prevention and Development,
Barrie Fire and Emergency Service. "It
has made our residents watchful of storm-darkened
skies, wary of nature's destructive power
and mindful of the need to be prepared for
the next possible emergency. The City of Barrie
has a newly-updated emergency response plan
that has been developed based on our risk
profile and severe weather is a major consideration
for us. We encourage people to use this anniversary
as an opportunity to ensure that their own
families are prepared for the next emergency.That
means simple things like having a safe meeting
place, keeping your car full of gas and having
some cash on hand."
Environment Canada monitors the weather 24
hours a day, seven days a week. Canadians
are becoming more aware that when Environment
Canada issues watches, advisories or warnings
through national, regional and local radio
and television stations, they need to listen
and prepare accordingly.
While severe weather is a reality in Canada,
many disaster losses are preventable. Investments
in public alerting, mitigation, improvements
in land-use planning, enforcement of effective
building codes, hazards safety research and
more active public education are a few options
that can reduce the adverse impact of severe
weather hazards.
The nature of weather prediction has changed
and improved significantly in recent years.
Today's weather forecasters are using the
latest science and technological developments
to help them make increasingly more precise
predictions to meet Canada's future requirements.
Today's new technology such as Doppler Radars,
lightning detection networks, satellite imagery
and supercomputers results in increasingly
precise predictions of severe weather events.
In addition to new technologies, Canadians
now have access to the latest weather and
severe weather information on the internet,
on Automated Telephone Answering Devices (ATAD's)
and through Weatheradio. In addition, Environment
Canada has added a free weather internet service
fully customized to meet Canadian media needs
to provide their customers with the most up
to date weather forecasts and severe weather
warnings possible.
