Hydro Ottawa aims to restore all power Wednesday

Life is slowly returning to normal for most residents of Ottawa-Gatineau after Friday's destructive tornadoes.

It's now been four days since a pair of twisters hit the capital: one starting in the rural west Ottawa community of Dunbrobinbeforemovingto Gatineau'sMont-Bleu neighbourhood, and the other hitting Nepean's Arlington Woods community before churningeast to the Greenboro area.

A third tornado struck Calabogie, Ont., west of Ottawa.

As of 11:15a.m. Tuesday,hydro crews have restored power to all but approximately 840 customers in Nepean, 2,950 customers in the Outaouais and 325customers in areas just outside Ottawacovered by Hydro One.

ByTuesday night, only 109 customers in the Arlington Woods area remainedwithout power, Hydro Ottawa said.

The power utility expected they wouldbe reconnected by Wednesday afternoon.

Support centres still open

There are two community support centres set up in Ottawa's hardest-hit areas:theNepeanSportsplexand West Carleton Secondary School.

The city said the centreswill be open from 9 a.m. until 8 p.m. and will allow affected residents totalk to agencies including Hydro One, the Red Cross and the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

Gatineau continues to run a support centreat Centre communautaire Pre-Arthur-Guertin, at 16 rue Briault.

As of Monday afternoon, 1,479 people had registered there and all but seven of 212 evacuated buildings had been turned back over to the owners.

By Monday night, 170 people needed a place to stay in Gatineau: 121 at the support centre and 49 in hotels. That's down from 301 on Sunday night.

Buildings damaged beyond repair in Mont-Bleu are starting to be demolished,while Knoxdale-Merivale Coun. Keith Egli said Tuesday morning between 100 and 150 homes will likely have to be demolished in Arlington Woods.

Tuesday afternoon, the city said 30 homes in Dunrobin will need to be demolished and no homes are being demolished at this time in Arlington Woods.

"Housing is our top priority [today] as it was yesterday," said Gatineau Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin at the support centre on Tuesday morning.

"We were happy that more people than expected got into hotel rooms and things look even better for tonight It's tough to sleep here, there's no [privacy],it's way better for them to have some sort of comfort in a hotel."

Anyone who needs a shower can go to theCentreaquatiquePaul-Pelletierat 325 ch.Aylmeruntil 9 p.m. or Centresportifat 850 blvd de laGappeuntil 10 p.m.

Disaster and recovery in Ottawa-Gatineau

6 years ago

Duration 2:47

Residents are combing through the wreckage of their homes and reaching out to help neighbours after tornadoes ripped through Ottawa-Gatineau on Sept. 21.

Schools, roads mostly open

Ottawa-Gatineau schools and roads are open again, except in the hardest-hit areas.

There are no classes atKnoxdale Public School orWest Carleton Secondary School in Ottawa, norHadley Junior High School, colesecondaire Mont-Bleu and Philemon Wright High School in Gatineau.

Both cities said their road network is mostly back to normal, with closures still in place on Ottawa'sGreenbank Road andThomas Dolan Parkway.

Federal public servants are heading back to work Tuesday after being asked or told to stay home Monday, depending on their department's circumstances.

Meeting for non-insured

The City of Gatineau and the Red Cross have set up two meetings for storm-affected residents who don't have insurance at thesalle Jean-Desprz at City Hall. The first happens at 2 p.m. and the second at 6:30 p.m.

There will be free buses running to these meetings from thePre-Arthur-Guertinsupport centre starting 30 minutes beforehand.

In the Township of Greater Madawaska, where a third tornado hit communities including Calabogie and White Lake on Friday afternoon, residents don't need to buy a fire permit to burn branches and brush until Oct. 9.

The municipal offices on Parnell Street in Calabogieare open again on Tuesday after power was restored there.

Communities are asking that cash donations be made to the Red Cross, which has set up dedicated funds for the area's victims. The Salvation Army is accepting donations of clothing, furniture and household items at its thrift stores.

In Gatineau, donations of clothing, personal hygiene products and non-perishable food are being accepted and distributed from the former Sears store at Galeriesde Hull between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, those hours shift from 12 p.m.to 8 p.m.

Need to toss spoiled food?

Residents can toss spoiled food from warm fridges into green bins, or into these bins being provided by the city on a temporary basis:

• 950 Clyde Ave.
• Basin Court in Arlington Woods.
• Conroy Works Yard: 3100 Conroy Rd.
• Hunt Club Community Centre:3320 Paul Anka Dr.
• Johnny Leroux Arena:10 Warner Colpitts Ln.
• Kanata Recreation Centre:100 Charlie Rogers Pl.
• Manotick Arena:5572 Doctor Leach Dr.
• Minto Sports Complex:3500 Cambrian Rd.
• Nepean Sportsplex:1701 Woodroffe Ave.
• North Gower Town Hall:2155 Roger Stevens Dr.
• Pinecrest Recreation Centre:2250 Tourquay Ave.
• Richcraft Arena:4101 Innovation Dr.
• Richmond Arena:6095 Perth St.
• Tom Brown Arena:141 Bayview Ave.
• Walter Baker Sports Centre:100 Malvern Dr.

The City of Ottawa is advising residents not to put storm debris at thecurb, but to let their insurance companies to dispose of it instead.