One week after six tornadoes ripped through the Ottawa-Gatineau region, hundreds of people are still living in temporary housing and sorting through the debris of what used to be their homes.
Kim Azulay, a resident of the decimated community of Dunrobin, Ont., for example, is still picking through and bagging up belongings from the rubble of her destroyed house.
鈥淢y plans were to have it go to my son, which could still happen,鈥� she said of her home in an interview with CTV News. 鈥淚t just won鈥檛 be the original one.鈥�
While Azulay is committed to rebuilding in the future, the fear she experienced from the vicious storm itself is still very present.
鈥淚n comes in waves,鈥� Azulay explained. 鈥淭here was bad weather last night and I鈥� really had a meltdown because I thought it was coming back.鈥�
Despite such challenges, people like Azulay are also feeling gratitude because of the army of strangers and friends who have been pitching in to help clean up and rebuild the area.
鈥淭his is one of the wonderful things of life to see everybody working together,鈥� Gary Tenhaaf said from Dunrobin as people worked around him.
To help with those efforts, the provincial government recently announced that it would be providing the City of Ottawa with more than $1.5 million in funding to help city staff remove downed trees and debris left in the tornadoes鈥� wake. And although the cleanup is far from over, there have been signs of progress.
鈥淚f you look and see everything on the ground now, it鈥檚 normally all equipment that鈥檚 supposed to be up in the air,鈥� a hydro worker told CTV News from a severely damaged transmission station in Ottawa. 鈥淭he transmission system is getting stronger and stronger every day.鈥�
That damage caused more than 200,000 households to lose power. After days of work, the station is finally running again, meaning that homes that can be connected are now back on the grid.
For Ottawa resident Myrna Fenton, being able to take a hot shower again was a welcome development.
鈥淲e got out power back, I think it was Tuesday or Wednesday,鈥� Fenton told CTV News from her doorstep. 鈥淭hat was a big thing.鈥�
With a report from CTV Ottawa鈥檚 Annie Bergeron-Oliver
