Downburst likely cause of widespread damage in Delta, Ont.

DELTA, ONT. -

The severe storm that raced across Ontario Sunday evening also caused widespread damage northwest of Brockville, in the small village of Delta.

Crews were busy on Tuesday clearing trees and limbs from roadways and properties, with residents noting most homes and cars escaped with minor damage.

"I experienced more thunder and lightning than I have ever seen in my life before and I am not a young man," said 85-year-old Delta resident Pat Brophy recalling the storm.

"It was just unending, and we were looking out the window, my wife and I, and I couldn't believe the amount of lightning I saw," he added, saying his home received no damage.

Tom O'Shea, another Delta resident, described the scene as he came through the village Monday morning to check on his property.

"It was probably one of the worst Monday mornings I've ever had," he said. "I came in and all the crews were out and you're hoping as you come around the corner and you get closer and you're like d'oh!"

Trees and branches covered the lawn, just missing the house.

"Home is good, I think the car's got a few hard knocks on it, it needs a new windshield and some work," O'Shea said.

Suzanne Guild was in bed with her husband when the storm arrived, not realizing that it would be so severe.

"We knew rain was coming, and we woke with the sound of rain," Guild recalled. "It was so loud we thought it was huge hail hitting the window and the house but it wasn't, it was just the rain it was overwhelmingly loud."

A snapped tree in the village of Delta, Ont. (Nate Vandermeer/CTV News Ottawa)

Her property escaped damage, but her neighbour’s cottage was not so lucky.

"We found some damage, we found the tree up against the roof," Guild said.

Another lot over, a laneway was littered with dozens of trees, the strong winds snapping them off 30 feet up.

"We all have these beautiful tall pines and so when there is a big storm I guess it's all of our nightmares that some day one of these is going to come down," Guild said. "We were lucky Sunday night."

Guild said she received the warnings on her phone 10 minutes after the storm hit.

Power was restored to most in the area by Monday afternoon.

The storm also brought more than 80 millimetres of rain to Brockville and area, flooding basements, and washing out part of Black Church Road near Athens.

In Forthton, it turned the Brockville Ontario Speedway into something a bit different.

"Lake Brockville Speedway!" laughed owner Paul Kirkland. "The infield was completely underwater and 10 feet up on the race track. I have never seen that much water ever here."

The Brockville Ontario Speedway flooded infield (Courtesy Brockville Ontario Speedway/Facebook)

"(Monday) morning at about 10 o'clock we started pumping and we stopped at about 1 o'clock this morning," he said. "We're back at it again at about 7:30 this morning. Just hope for some dry weather now."

On Tuesday afternoon, the Northern Tornadoes Project told CTV News Ottawa that a weak downburst was the likely cause of the widespread damage, as residents continued to clean up, a process that will likely take a few days.

"Instead of one day at time it's one tree at a time," O'Shea said.