A Toronto man on his way to Thunder Bay for some rest and relaxation says he had to go through what he describes as hurricane-like conditions in order to make his flight.
Craig Lazray and his six-year-old-son Nolan, planned to head North to meet up with friends in the city and enjoy some fishing at a camp. But Mother Nature had other plans and dumped 126 mm of rain on the area Monday.
That broke the previous single-day rainfall record for the city, which was set in October of 1954 when hurricane Hazel dumped a reported 121 mm on the city.
The rainfall caused flash flooding and numerous power outages.
Lazray said he was walking through a parking lot when suddenly water came up to his knees.
“I have to say that’s the most rain I’ve ever seen and I’m born and raised in Toronto,” he said after arriving at the Thunder Bay International Airport on Tuesday.
“That’s the most rain I’ve ever seen in a 20 minute span. I would say walking a hundred metres I was completely soaked. I could ring them out. It’s like they came just out of the washer. It was insane. I couldn’t see an inch in front of me.”
Although he and his son made it to the city, his bags didn’t.
Lazray said he’s looking forward to spending the next three days at the camp and putting the experience behind him.
“It was a like a hurricane came through,” he said. “I couldn’t believe how fast it just came in and poured.”
Thunder Bay’s Gerard Smith was returning home to Thunder Bay from Toronto when the storm hit.
He was waiting at the Billy Bishop Airport and about to head onto his plane when he noticed a large storm coming towards them.
The weather became worse and Smith and his family were forced to spend another night in the big city.
“I’ve never seen rain like that,” he said.
“The thunder and lightning was unbelievable. People were getting quite panicked then all of a sudden the lights went out. When they cancelled the flights, we all had to queue up for today.”
Many people whose flights were cancelled had no place to stay but Smith said they were lucky enough to have somewhere to go close by.
As they were walking the streets of Toronto, many people were in lines trying to grab cabs. He described the situation as chaotic.
“I’ve never experienced something like that in my whole life and I certainly hope to never to again,” he said.
“We were watching it on the news and we saw rafts taking people out of the GO trains, which was happening maybe two or three blocks from where we were.”
The Toronto-area storm also caused flights to be delayed and cancelled leaving many stuck in Thunder Bay while they waited for the next available flight.
Reg Lebouthillier was on his way to New Brunswick from Edmonton before his flight was forced to come to the city. He was making the trek across the country in order to help his father-in-law after his house burned down.
For his efforts, he had to wait in line for five hours before learning that he was stuck in Thunder Bay for the night.
“No one talked to us,” he said referring to how no one from the airline he was on was giving passengers information.
“I got a hotel at 11 p.m. I couldn’t fly with WestJet so I booked with Air Canada. It doesn’t matter if you have an emergency, they don’t care. They knew Toronto was closed so they made us wait.”
Chris Preece had a bit more luck on his journey to England.
Preece, on his way to Manchester to attend his grandfather’s funeral with his younger sister, had to change airlines in order to make his connecting flight. He said they were first directed to land in Ottawa but then were told to turn around and land in Thunder Bay.
“I’m feeling a bit nervous,” he said before boarding his plane.
“I’m trying to catch my connecting flight. I’m stressed out and tired and hungry. I haven’t eaten since six but the restaurant was nice enough to provide pizza for everyone free of charge. I was phoning England telling my family members that I was stuck in Thunder Bay. Then my phone was dead and I couldn’t do anything but it all worked out in the end.”
