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Tornado hits east Ottawa

A tornado touched down in Ottawa on Sunday. (Photo/Eric Gilmour)

A tornado formed near the Gatineau airport Sunday evening, around 6 p.m., before moving into the Ottawa area to cause damage in Orléans and other areas.

Environment Canada issued a preliminary statement late Sunday, saying the tornado appeared to be of EF1 force, on the Enhanced Fujita scale that runs from zero to 5. Environment Canada said winds could have been up to 135 km/h.

It appears the tornado that formed in Gatineau moved over Ottawa, where it threw around debris in Orléans and caused damage to some homes. A funnel cloud was also observed in the Rockland area by a trained spotter, and a confirmed tornado was near Alfred by 7:26 p.m. There was also a possible tornado near L’Orignal reported shortly after 8 p.m.; it’s unclear whether they were one and the same or multiple.

Social media photos showed an apartment building in Orléans that suffered roof damage, while others reported trees were uprooted along with other assorted storm damage. The City of Ottawa said it was evaluating the situation on-site. Environment Canada had a damage survey team in Ottawa on Monday.

There was one reported minor injury, said Coun. Matthew Luloff.