Storm damage south of Hanover, Ont.

Jack MacLeod woke up to quite a mess on his property, just south of Hanover, Friday morning.

“I just heard the bang and crash. Didn’t think much of it, because there was a storm that came through [Thursday] night. Woke up [Friday] morning and looked out the bathroom window, and the tree was gone,” he said.

MacLeod had substantial damage on the property he calls home on Grey Road 28, near Sulphur Springs Conservation Area. Several trees were toppled, one landing on his house.

“When I went downstairs and looked out the front door, I said, ‘holy smokes!’ It was all over my deck, smashed it all to heck,” he added.

MacLeod also had a tent toppled and picnic table smashed by a falling tree. A nearby home had a tree resting on the home’s roof as well. Minor damage was also observed at Sulphur Springs Conservation Area, by a falling tree damaging a spillway fence.

Damage seemed to be isolated to a small swath of properties and land, just south of Hanover.

Between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m., Thursday night, strong storms worked their way through the Hanover area.

It’s unclear if the damage at MacLeod’s was the work of straight line winds, a downburst, or a weak tornado.

Storm investigators with Western’s Northern Tornadoes Project had yet to be notified of MacLeod’s damage as of 4 p.m. Friday.

MacLeod said he’s just happy to be okay, and that his home survived the worst of the storm.

Damage from a storm on August 3, 2023, at Jack MacLeod’s home, located south of Hanover, Ont. on Grey Road 28, as seen on August 4, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

Damage from a storm on August 3, 2023, at Jack MacLeod’s home, located south of Hanover, Ont. on Grey Road 28, as seen on August 4, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

Damage from a storm on August 3, 2023, at Jack MacLeod’s home, located south of Hanover, Ont. on Grey Road 28, as seen on August 4, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

Damage from a storm on August 3, 2023, at Jack MacLeod’s home, located south of Hanover, Ont. on Grey Road 28, as seen on August 4, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)