It rained yesterday. It rained a lot. It rained so much that a GO train became trapped in the Don Valley, the highways disappeared under an oceanic amount of water, and Doug Ford even started directing traffic at Dixon Road and Islington Avenue. Rob Ford, on the other hand, had to decamp to his idling SUV because the power and AC was out at his home. Crisis? What crisis.
Re-live pictures of Toronto's worst ever rain storm in all its soggy-shoed glory here and be glad things didn't turn out worse. If you're counting, the Pearson received 126 mms in under two hours - more than what fell during Hurricane Hazel and more than what's expected for all of July.
Here's an update on how things stand around the city:
TTC: Service has been restored on the Yonge-University-Spadina and Sheppard lines and the TTC expects to be operating at full capacity for the rush-hour. The Bloor-Danforth line is using shuttle buses between Jane and Kipling due to a flood that damaged a substation. Streetcars may experience delays due to localized problems - the 504 King is out between Roncesvalles and Shaw due to a flood at Dufferin.
ROADS: Mostly back to normal. The DVP, 401, 427, Lake Shore, and Bayview have all re-opened are operating as normal. The underpass at King and Atlantic is still underwater the 401 collector exit ramp to the 400 is closed. Downed trees and localized issues are causing problems city-wide.
GO TRANSIT: There are a lot of lingering delays specific to each line. Trains are running on the Lake Shore East and West lines though there is a shuttle bus between Port Credit and Union and there are a handful of cancellations and outages elsewhere.
AIR: No closures though there may be delays out of Pearson. Best to check with the airline.
POWER: Mostly back on though there are pockets in the west end where the lights may still be out.
WEATHER: More rain! Showers and thunderstorms expected this afternoon, though nothing on the scale of yesterday's deluge. High of 26 C plus humidity.
More than 1,400 people were rescued from a GO train that became stranded in rising flood waters just south of Pottery Road in the Don Valley. Many of the passengers were stuck on for more than four hours and two people attempted to swim to safety. One needed rescuing from the water. Amazingly, no injuries, and the line is now clear.
In drier news, Nathan Ng, a local map enthusiast, has put together another collection of cartographical wonders, this time focusing on Fort York and environs. Ng has already assembled a collection of late-1800s fire plan maps, and a substantial archive of Toronto street maps. Some of the Fort York images have never been published online before. Check it out.
Finally, all this Windsor, Ont. Lego enthusiast wanted to do was visit the Legoland Discovery Centre in Vaughan Mills - trouble is, the Danish toy company has a weirdly strict policy that prevents adults entering the attraction without a young child in tow. As such, John St-Onge, a 63-year-old cancer patient, was given the boot at the door despite protests. Ouch.
IN BRIEF:
- Child porn charges for Toronto prof, ex-adviser to Ont. premier [CBC]
- Driver nabbed going 225 km/h on Ontario highway [CBC]
- Comics stage Toronto benefit for flood-stricken Alberta [CBC]
Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman.
Image: ~EvidencE~/blogTO Flickr pool.