Campers at Wheatley Provincial Park were back around their bonfires Thursday night, just hours after a violent storm brought down trees, knocked out power and prompted a tornado warning for the area. Environment Canada said around 5 p.m. that radar had confirmed a tornado near Wheatley Provincial Park as a severe thunderstorm raced southeast at about 70 km/h. By 7 p.m., the rain had stopped and the main roads through the park were passable — but the aftermath of the storm was still scattered across the campground. Several large trees had come down near the park entrance, along with branches and limbs throughout the grounds. Maintenance crews spent the evening moving through the park with tractors and chainsaws, clearing debris from roads. One camper told CTV News the entrance road had been cleared within two hours of the storm. ‘The sky just went dark’ Park staff Ceilidh Henrickx and Emma Weil were working near the entrance when conditions quickly deteriorated. “We kept getting alerts on our phones,” Henrickx said. “We were reading them and we were like, ‘This is like 14 alerts now.’ We were like, ‘Maybe we should do something,’ and then the sky just went dark.” Weil said the rain became so heavy they could barely see outside. Then lightning struck a tree nearby. “We look out and lightning strikes a tree right there, falls over, takes down our line, starts sparking,” she said. The pair called the fire department before moving toward the middle of the building for shelter. Other trees began coming down around them. “We watched that tree go down, and then another tree, and then a few trees over there,” Weil said. “We looked the other way, and those ones were falling down.” At one point, they became concerned another large tree bending in the wind could fall onto the building. Campers stay put after storm Despite the damage, staff said there were no injuries reported at the park and they were not aware of any serious damage to campers or trailers. CTV News spoke with campers who reported trees or branches coming down around their sites, including some landing on trailers without causing major damage. Others said tents, chairs and other camping gear were blown around during the storm. Staff estimated roughly 100 to 150 campsites were occupied at the time. Few appeared ready to call their trips short. Henrickx said only a small number of campers approached staff about leaving after the storm. Among those staying put were the park’s volunteer hosts, known as the “Camping Grannies.” Pat Andrykew, who said she has about 60 years of camping experience, called Thursday’s storm the worst she has encountered while camping. “It was scary,” Andrykew said. “The rain was really hard. It got very dark and you could barely see across the street.” She said the camping area escaped the worst of the damage. “I understand the front got it worse than the camping area,” Andrykew said. Environment Canada’s warning described the situation as “very dangerous and potentially life-threatening,” with destructive winds, damaging hail and flooding rain also possible. While radar confirmed a tornado in the area, staff interviewed by CTV News said they did not see a funnel or tornado during the storm. Power remained out at the park Thursday evening, but the campground was otherwise settling back into its usual rhythm -- bonfires burning and marshmallows roasting, with the sound of chainsaws continuing in the background.
