Bracebridge, ON F0 Tornado of July 11, 2003

Parry Sound - Muskoka


This tornado touched down near Bracebridge, and reportedly caused minor damage at Santa’s Village, a local entertainment park. There, trees were uprooted and snapped, bringing down hydro poles, and at nearby cottage property, a boat port was destroyed.

This was one of three tornadoes that struck the Muskoka Region on July 11. The others were an F0 at Vasey, and an F0 at Elmvale. Damage from the three tornadoes was estimated at around $50,000.

Figure 1 depicts the surface observations at 8:00 am EDT, which shows a low pressure over Lake Huron with a cold front extending into southwestern Ontario and a warm front extending into southern Ontario. These fronts became the focus of intense thunderstorms in the early morning hours of July 11th, which ultimately led to this tornado.

Figure 1. Surface analysis at 12Z on July 11, 2003 showing mean sea-level pressure (MSLP) contours, surface observations, fronts and pressure centres (WPC, 2017)

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada (2018), an F0 tornado touched down at 11:00 am EDT near Bracebridge, ON. The tornado travelled for 850 metres, but the width was not documented by ECCC. The tornado caused no fatalities, injuries or property damage.


Sources

NWS Weather Prediction Center Surface Analysis Archive. (2017). Surface analysis 12Z Fri Jul 11 2003. Retrieved from: https://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/archives/web_pages/sfc/sfc_archive.php

Environment and Climate Change Canada Data. (2018). Canadian National Tornado Database: Verified Events (1980-2009) – Public. Retrieved from: http://donnees.ec.gc.ca/data/weather/products/canadian-national-tornado-database-verified-events-1980-2009-public/