Tornado Batters Area near Canadian Capital of Ottawa

MORE than 200,000 people in Canada's capital region of Ottawa were without power on Saturday and two people were critically injured after a powerful tornado ripped apart dozens of homes and threw cars into the air.

After visiting the hard-hit Dunrobin area, in the city's west, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson likened it to an aerial bombing, adding that Friday's tornado was among "the top two or three traumatic events that have affected our city" in history.

Gatineau, in Quebec province just north of Ottawa, was also hit hard by the storm whose winds reached 200km per hour.

Around 30 people were hurt, with six taken to hospital and two in a critical condition as of Saturday, according to hospital authorities.

The storm also downed dozens of electric lines throughout the region, as Mayor Watson predicted it may take several days for power to return to everyone affected.