Ayr, Ont. slowly rebuilding after EF1 tornado hits community

The community of Ayr, Ont. is starting to rebuild after a destructive EF1 tornado tore its way through the village over the weekend.

A remarkable amount of damage could be seen Monday in the area of the North Dumfries Community Complex.

Like a scene out of a movie, the tornado ripped through Ayr just before 11 a.m. Saturday. Winds gusts of up to 165 km/hr whipped through a path more than five kilometers long and knocked over a grain elevator, turning rail cars onto their sides.

A local Home Hardware store was nearly demolished, terrifying those who were inside at the time.

A possible funnel cloud can be seen near Ayr, Ont. on August 17, 2024. (Shelby Knox/CTV News)“They heard rumbling, they actually saw parts of the building disappearing and then they ran to the front of the store which seemed to be the safer place so that’s how they got out,” said owner of the store, Jeff Seydel.

Despite the extensive damage, no one was hurt, according to police.

“I was so amazed at how brave my team was…I didn’t expect it to be as bad as it was in terms of what I saw, but again, just relief that everybody was okay,” Seydel said.

Engineers say the building will have to be demolished. There is no estimated cost of damage at this time.

Engineers say a Home Hardware store will have to be demolished. There is no estimate cost of damage at this time. (Krista Sharpe/CTV News) “We are just waiting for them to do assessments of the building and whether or not we can safely enter it,” Seydel explained.

Across the street, two fertilizer domes had their roofs ripped off and farmers in the area may need to make different plans ahead of harvest.

“Four rail cars were flipped on their side off the rail tracks,” said North Dumfries Fire Chief, Robert Shantz. “They were empty at the time and there was also an elevator that conveys all of the fertilizer up to these domes and the fertilizer mixing plant and that was twisted into a piece of metal rubble.”

Next door, debris also littered the community soccer field. Shantz said thankfully, a kid’s tournament scheduled for that day had been previously cancelled.

“I saw dozens of trees on the ground, on the power lines as well,” said a local arborist apprentice, Logan Hall.

Arborists and hydro workers are still cleaning up Monday after an already busy weekend.

“It was pretty chaotic at the start, that’s for sure,” Hall said.

Residential areas were also heavily impacted by the storm.

“There is a lot of tree damage and a lot of trees down and its just absolutely amazing that no one was injured down on that district and that all the homes are still standing,” Shantz explained. “Buildings can be repaired or replaced but lives cannot and that is the most important thing.”

Mayor reaction

CTV News reached out to the Mayor of North Dumfries Township on Monday for comment after Saturday’s weather event.

Mayor Sue Foxton was on her way to Ottawa along Hwy. 401 when she got the emergency alert notifying her of a tornado warning.

“You couldn’t see the vehicle in front of you for a lot of it,” Foxton said in an interview with CTV News. “So I got back into the township and headed right to the command centre and started to deal with what was happening.”

Foxton said the damage to some of the township’s buildings was extensive.

“The roof of our outdoor facility was ripped off. Metal was wrapped around parts of the splash pad. Thank God no kids were out there because this came on fast and heavy.”

After the tornado, Foxton said it was all hands on deck when it came to the clean up process.

“Even staff that weren’t called in wanted to come in and help…every municipality called me…ministries reached out, everybody stepped up,” she explained.

Debris litters the community soccer field in Ayr, Ont. on August 19, 2024.Moving forward, Foxton urges community members to avoid areas that are impacted by weather events to better allow township officials and emergency crews to work in a safe manner.

“One of our biggest problems was Northumberland Street was packed with people rubbernecking and we want to make sure that emergency staff can get in there and take care of everything…please let us do our jobs and make it better for everybody.”