Limerick will host Storm Cleanup Appreciation Summer Barbecue Aug. 20

August 16, 2022

By Mike Riley

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Limerick Township council will be hosting a Storm Cleanup Appreciation Summer Barbecue on Aug. 20 to thank everyone who helped cleanup in the aftermath of the derecho that hit the township on May 21. According to a posting on the municipality’s Facebook page, the event will be held from noon to 3 p.m. and they are also accepting donations of non-perishable food items to the Tri-Township Food Bank. Victoria Tisdale, the clerk and treasurer, comments on this upcoming event.

The Storm Cleanup Appreciation Summer Barbecue will be held at the Limerick Community Centre at 7645 Hwy 620 on Aug. 20 from noon to 3 p.m. Tisdale says that the township staff are donating their time for this event to thank everyone who helped with the cleanup after the derecho that hit Limerick township and surrounding areas on May 21.

As defined by www.weather.gov, a derecho is a widespread, long-lived wind storm that is associated with a band of rapidly moving showers or thunderstorms, with resultant damage directed in one direction along a relatively straight path. The derecho that hit Limerick and other parts of eastern Ontario and Quebec on May 21 had winds up to 190 kilometres per hour and chunks of hail in some areas. It affected almost half of Canada’s population, including Limerick, resulting in downed trees, property damage, massive hydro outages that affected approximately 1.1 million people and at least 11 deaths. It was the sixth costliest in Canada in terms of insurance claims, with a total figure of $875 million. This catastrophic weather event led Limerick to declare a state of emergency and to convene an emergency meeting of the Community Emergency Management Coordinator disaster management team on May 24 to review what had happened and how to move forward.

The Aug. 20 barbecue to thank those who helped with the derecho cleanup will have hamburgers, jumbo hot dogs, cold drinks and treats for the kids. Attendees will also be able to meet members of the Ontario Mounted Special Service Unit team [horseback mounted units the township brought in on May 25 to clear obstructions and look for injured or missing people on trails in Limerick], Hydro One, the OPP and local fire prevention services. Donations of non-perishable food items to the Tri-Township Food Bank are also being gratefully accepted.

Tisdale reveals that public works supervisor Greg Maxwell will be doing the barbecuing, and that for the kids’ treats, they’re going to be offering the option of Freezies, chips or candy.

“We are sending the flyer out to all Limerick residents, however anyone who wishes to come is welcome to,” she says.

Tisdale says that the event is meant to be inclusive to anyone who was affected by the storm, and who volunteered their time to assist their neighbours with the cleanup.

“There are many people who are not associated with a committee or business that took time out of their lives to assist and donate their time and equipment and we wanted to recognize them as well.”