Hurricane Hazel

On October 15/16 1954, Hurricane Hazel ripped through
Toronto causing death and destruction to the city.
Thirty-two people lost their lives when 14 houses on Raymore Avenue
slid down a hill into the Humber River.
Five volunteer firemen were swept to their deaths
when they and their truck slid into a river. Numbers vary,
but most accounts list Toronto's death toll at 81.

All I remember about the storm is sitting in my bedroom looking
out the window and hearing sheets of rain beating off the back of our house.
We had one Sumach tree in our backyard and it was bending so
much in the wind that I thought for sure it would snap in half.

The picture above was taken on the main street of
Centre Island a few days after the storm. I remember
there being so much flooding that we had to walk on planks
for quite some time after the storm.

Baaaack