Raymore Bridge
It happened in October 1954. It was Hurricane Hazel. It destroyed a lot of bridges over the Humber River including a footbridge near Lawrence Avenue West. Parts of the wrecked footbridge, having been left where they ended up, were turned into memorials to the flood just north of this replacement bridge. Photos of the memorials are near the bottom of this page. A Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto plaque commemorating the bridge is located beside a parking lot off Raymore Drive. Here's what the plaque says:
As dawn broke on Thursday October 14, 1954, Hurricane Hazel reached Southern Ontario after lashing the eastern United States. By midnight Friday, October 15, an estimated 209mm of rain had fallen, creating massive floods throughout Metro. The resulting damage was severe. Just upstream, flood waters tore loose a footbridge that crossed the Humber River. The river rose 6 metres, sweeping away 14 homes on Raymore Drive and killing 32 residents in one hour. After Hurricane Hazel, the Metropolitan Toronto and Region Conservation Authority was established to promote watershed management and public ownership of the floodplain. Raymore Park was then dedicated in memory of Hurricane Hazel's many victims and survivors. In 1995, a new footbridge was constructed by Metro Toronto with support from the Province of Ontario, representing a substantial step towards the completion of the Humber Trail and greenway system.
Location Co-ordinates: 43.696820 -79.514628
Photo by Alan L Brown - September 2006
Related Hurricane Hazel pages:
Hurricane Hazel
Bailey Bridge Construction
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