Tornado near Perth, Ont. during severe weather on Wednesday, Northern Tornadoes Project says

Damage is reported across a 20 km track in eastern Ontario after a tornado touched down near Perth, Ont. during severe weather Wednesday night.

"Based on video, radar and early damage reports, at least two tornadoes occurred (Wednesday) evening – one near Perth, Ont. and one at Brossard, Que. near Montreal," the Northern Tornadoes Project said.

• Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App

David Sills of the Northern Tornadoes Project tells CTV News Ottawa there are damage reports from the Christie Lake and Rideau Ferry areas that are part of the tornado damage path.

"The NTP storm survey team will be investigating in the area on Friday or Saturday to determine the full extent of the damage."

Sills says a video from Christie Lake shows the tornado forming.

"Really dramatic, showed the tornado forming and then it moved basically eastwards from there and ended up doing damage in Rideau Ferry," Sills told Newstalk 580 CFRA's Ottawa Now with Kristy Cameron. "We've got a possible track of damage."

One person living on Christie Lake, Don, told Ottawa Now he witnessed the tornado first-hand.

"You could hear the tornado coming down the lake like a locomotive and you could see it, and boy, did it hit hard," Don said. "It knocked some of our trees down, three big trees, 200-year-old trees, and took our boat and dock and moved them about 20 feet away... And then it was gone, just like that."

Don said he got the tornado alert about five minutes after it had already passed his area.

Videos on social media showed storm damage in the Rideau Ferry area just after 8 p.m., including uprooted and damaged trees. 

At the Bass Lake Campground in Lombardy, residents were cleaning up on Thursday after dozens of trees were damaged by the storm. CTV's Dylan Dyson shared images of toppled trees on homes and properties.

A severe storm uprooted trees at the Bass Lake Campground in Lombardy, Ont., near Rideau Ferry. (Dylan Dyson/CTV News Ottawa)

Environment Canada issued several weather warnings for Ottawa and eastern Ontario on Wednesday as storms moved across the region. A weather warning at 7:44 p.m. for Westport-Wolford, Kemptville, Smiths Falls, Perth and Eastern Lanark County said meteorologists were tracking a severe thunderstorm that is possibly producing a tornado.  A tornado warning was issued for Lanark County.

Hydro One is reporting approximately 1,155 customers without power in the Rideau Ferry area on Thursday morning.

Perth is located 85 kilometres southwest of downtown Ottawa.

Sills says there have been "quite a few high profile" tornado events in Ottawa and eastern Ontario since Western University launched the Northern Tornadoes Project in 2017. There were three tornadoes in Ottawa in 2023.

"I think the folks out there must be getting used to the tornado activity that is becoming more prevalent," Sills said.

The storms also caused damage in Cornwall Wednesday afternoon, including downed trees and damage to property. The City of Cornwall reported damage in the Riverdale area, with downed power lines.  

"All of a sudden, bang! It was like a fist. It hit the front of the house and the rain came and the wind," Anne Woods said. "It was so frightening."

Large trees were snapped and toppled in the Riverdale neighbourhood of Cornwall. A severe stormed moved through eastern Ontario Wednesday afternoon. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)

It appears no homes were significantly damaged by the storm.

"It was just, this surreal, situation. We've never seen anything like that before," said William Ayres. 

Arborist Jonathan Irvine expects to be busy for weeks.

"People are looking up going, 'OK, there's some broken stuff," Irvine said. "Let's take this tree down or let's deal with these broken stubs."

In the Glendale subdivision, a home was destroyed after being struck by lightning.

"It is very devastating," Mark Bennett told CTV News Ottawa's Tyler Fleming on Thursday. "We haven't been able to go in it, but I've looked in the doorway and it's a mess in there."

Glendale Subdivision, east of Cornwall, a home was destroyed after being struck by lightning during Wednesdays storm. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)

No injuries were reported.

With files from CTV News Ottawa's Tyler Fleming