More than 1,700 reports to Toronto’s 311 service during July’s major storms

The City of Toronto says it fielded more than 1,700 reports of power disruptions and flooding during the two major downpours in July.

The first of two heavy storms in the city this month, on July 16, saw three thunderstorms roll through in a matter of hours, bringing more than 100 millimeters of rain that caused widespread flooding.

Then, on Tuesday, a brief but intense downpour pushed the total rainfall for the month into record-breaking territory and saw flooding once again shutter some of the city’s major arteries, including the Don Valley Parkway and Lake Shore Boulevard West near Ontario Place.

Between the two weather events, residents placed a total of 1,715 calls to 311 related to the downpours, flooding, and power outages, the city confirmed to CTV News Toronto on Thursday.

The July 16 storm saw more than 1,550 calls placed – more than 400 related to power, 928 for sewer service lines, and 261 for blocked or flooding catch basins.

Tuesday’s downpour saw residents make 126 additional reports to the city.

The south end of the Don Valley Parkway was completely flooded in both directions following a significant rainstorm on July 16.

Karma Kunsang, who lives in the Rockcliffe–Smythe neighbourhood, was one of the more than 1,700 residents to lodge a report to the city after he discovered his basement filled with knee-high water. Some of his furniture was destroyed by the flooding, he said.

“I was literally shocked,” Kunsang told CTV News Toronto. “It was like a movie. When this happens to your own house, your brain stops working.”

The basements of Eric Swanson (left) and Karma Kunsang (right) were flooded following Tuesday’s record-breaking storm in Toronto.

While it’s too early to put a dollar figure on the damage left in the aftermath of Tuesday’s storm, the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) told CTV News Toronto last week that the July 16 storm is comparable to the 2013 storm in Toronto  – listed as one of the most expensive natural disasters in Canada, according to insurance payouts.

Data from the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) shows that claims filed after that weather event reached $1 billion.

“We can’t determine, at this point, what the magnitude of this event is,” Anne Marie Thomas, the bureau’s director of consumer and industry relations, said. “Because, as you can imagine, not everyone has filed an insurance claim yet.”

In the aftermath and cleanup, Toronto’s ability to withstand intensifying storms has been called into question.

According to City Manager Paul Johnson, however, little could have been done to prevent the widespread flooding and subsequent damage.

“The challenge is [that] much of the city is not designed to handle this amount of water,” he said in an update following the July 16 storm. “Some parts of this storm hit certain parts of the city in a way that was nowhere near predicted.”

With files from CTV News Toronto’s Phil Tsekouras and CP24’s Codi Wilson.