[00:00.00]Hurricanes seldom reach Ontario,
[00:02.72]Canada, but in 1954
[00:05.02]Hurricane Hazel exposed the residents
[00:09.07]of Toronto to an awful night
[00:11.47]of flooding and terror.
[00:13.45]Responding to the disaster
[00:15.96]required the supreme effort
[00:18.15]of all the rescue departments.
[00:20.56]In Ontario where a harsh winter
[00:25.59]extends from November until April,
[00:28.43]snowstorms are a regular occurrence.
[00:31.50]People adjust their travel plans,
[00:34.13]sports activities and especially
[00:36.53]their mode of dress
[00:38.39]when the weather forecasters
[00:40.03]predict a severe snowstorm.
[00:43.10]Automobile drivers must be more
[00:47.36]cautious under these circumstances.
[00:49.44]Snow removal becomes a major
[00:53.49]expense for northern cities.
[00:56.44]Families adjust their weekend plans
[00:59.61]and stay together at home,
[01:02.02]sitting safely in front
[01:03.99]of a blazing fire,
[01:05.96]and viewing a video.
[01:07.49]The beauty of fluffy white snow
[01:11.21]can be appreciated when it
[01:13.40]blankets stately evergreens
[01:15.92]standing against a deep blue sky.
[01:19.19]In 1998, Ontario residents
[01:23.68]were crippled by a severe ice storm.
[01:27.66]People’s lives came to
[01:29.73]a grinding halt when
[01:31.37]power lines crumpled under
[01:33.12]the weight of the ice.
[01:35.20]People lived without electricity for weeks.
[01:38.48]Remote parts of the province
[01:42.53]resumed normal living conditions
[01:44.50]after several months. Rocks,
[01:47.78]trees and lakes abound in the
[01:50.84]Canadian Shield area of Ontario.
[01:54.02]Electrical storms provide spectacular entertainment
[01:57.96]for summer evenings. Zigzag bolts
[02:02.33]of lightening flash across the sky.
[02:05.40]The clap of thunder echoes
[02:07.80]across the water. Each storm
[02:10.87]provides a remarkable drama,
[02:13.05]one without parallel in nature.
[02:16.56]When individuals encounter
[02:18.96]the impressive forces of nature
[02:21.37]we are reminded that we are
[02:24.55]indeed weak and insignificant |