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Resident Remembers Tornado 45 Years Ago

Wednesday, 7 August 2024 16:58

By Kyle Freel X @KFreelHeartFM

It was a crazy day in 1979 when three twisters touched down in Woodstock and Oxford County.

WOODSTOCK/OXFORD COUNTY - It is a day residents of Woodstock and Oxford County will never forget.

On August 7th, 1979, 3 twisters touched down in the Friendly City and parts of Oxford County. The Friendly City's southend suffered the most destruction from an F4 tornado. Long-time resident, Anna Holmes has this memory.

"I can remember that my brother was going to a little awards ceremony for a summer school that he did, and I remember running into Northdale School, and as we were running up the sidewalk the lightning actually hit the lightpost right beside us."

Holmes also recalled this from that day.

"I can just remember the aftermath, and our aunts trying to come to Woodstock because they were so afraid, because of course at that time there were no cellphones, and the phone lines went down and they couldn't get through. I remember it was a pretty horrific day."

Two people were killed and 142 injuries were reported.

The estimated damage was 1hundred million dollars, but it was later adjusted to 3hundred-five million in 2011. Hundreds of homes and businesses were significantly damaged by the kilometre-wide tornado, leaving over a thousand people homeless and an additional 350 homes uninhabitable.

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