Ayr, Ont. tornado upgraded to EF2 rating

A tornado that touched down in Ayr, Ont. on Aug. 17 was initially believed to be an EF1 but researchers say that, after reviewing new evidence, they’ve upgraded it to an EF2 rating.

The Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP) released their updated findings on Monday.

“Additional drone imagery collection and analysis has resulted in several changes to the assessment for this tornado, including the rating, the length and the maximum width,” they explained in a media release.

• PHOTO GALLERY: Ayr, Ont. tornado on Aug. 17

NTP said the twister caused “EF1 structural damage and EF2 tree damage along a narrow path over seven kilometres in length and nearly 400 metres at its widest.”

Ground photo showing empty railcars overturned and a large grain loader arm thrown across them. (Courtesy: Northern Tornadoes Project)

They added that “empty rail cars and a tractor trailer were overturned, and two trailers were tossed.”

• WATCH: Video shows Aug. 17 tornado pass through North Dumfries, Ont.

“The trees that were down are really large and some of them even fell down in the direction towards the tornado, which is something we don’t often see,” David Sills, NTP’s executive director, explained in an interview with CTV News. “So I had an idea that this was a stronger tornado than it seemed.”

Drone image shows significant damage to the warehouse roof of a hardware store. (Source: Northern Tornadoes Project)

The NTP team, based at Western University in London, Ont., said they reviewed videos, photos, satellite imagery, drone footage and also conducted a ground search of the damage.

Monday’s release also included new photos of the damage.

“We’re in a very tornado-prone area in southwestern Ontario,” Sills explained. “I think the last couple of years we’ve just been really lucky that we haven’t seen strong [ones] in this area.”