Four downbursts recorded on the night of fatal tree fall

Damaged trees in Huntsville, Ont. after a downburst on May 18, 2026 (Northern Tornado Project)

A tree fall incident that lead to the death of a man in Huntsville, occurred on the same night as a series of downbursts in central Ontario.

A 19-year-old man died in hospital, after being struck by a falling tree in Huntsville’s Port Sydney neighbourhood on the evening of May 18.

According to Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP), that was the same night that downbursts swept through in Huntsville, Lake of Bays, Mattawa and Lake of Rivers.

According to NTP, most showers and thunderstorms produce downward drafts that head toward the surface of the earth, then disperse. A downburst is when a downward wind gust is strong enough to do damage, which usually happens in the atmospheric conditions similar to those of a thunderstorm.

A downburst that affects an area of four kilometres or less is referred to as a microburst.

On Dec. 18, a microburst was recorded in the Huntsville area around 8:40 p.m. that downed several trees. The NTP later assessed the damage of the downburst and determined a wind speed of 115 kilometres per hour with an estimate damage area of just over two kilometres long and a width of three hundred metres.

This downburst was given a EF0 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, the lowest level of measurable intensity for downbursts.

Another microburst was recording in Lake of Bays on the same night. According to NTP, it happened around 8:45 p.m. This downburst was given the same rating, as wind speeds were similar, but the damage area was smaller at just half a kilometre long and three hundred metres wide.

NTP says four injuries were recorded at campgrounds in the Lake of two Rivers area, as the result of a microburst. This microburst also occurred on May 18 and was given a EF0 rating, however the NTP says further investigation is required to determine the area of damage.

Another EF0 downburst occurred in Mattawa, around 8 p.m. resulting in one injury. The downburst had damage area of at least 8 kilometres long and 6 kilometres wide and caused damaged to a warehouse building in the area.