Residents west of Montreal recounted on Tuesday the moment when a tornado tore through their communities, taking only a few seconds to rip apart homes, vehicles and farm buildings.

The day after the storm, residents described being shaken but unhurt by Monday鈥檚 violent storm, which left behind a trail of broken trees, flattened buildings and fields full of debris.

Daniel G茅linas said he had only a few seconds to react before his 150-year-old farmhouse was hit at around 5:30 p.m. G茅linas was having a coffee in his home in Tr猫s-Saint-R茅dempteur, Que., near the Ontario border, when he looked out the window and saw his belongings spinning in the wind.

鈥淧arts of my deck were starting to fly by, and I started seeing the swirling in the yard, so I grabbed my dog, went to my basement and just jumped down,鈥� he said.

Within 30 seconds, it was over, G茅linas said in an interview.

鈥淲e literally hit the ground in the basement and got back up, looked outside and it was all done.鈥�

The storm that tore through his property ripped the roof off the small red farmhouse, flattened his garage and scattered his belongings across the street. A piece of the house鈥檚 roof dangled from a power line, while broken furniture, wood and equipment were strewn around the swimming pool and carefully landscaped garden.

Hydro-Qu茅bec crews were on site, walking through a tangle of downed trees and power lines strung with debris.

Environment Canada confirmed Tuesday it was a tornado that hit near Rigaud, which is about 60 kilometres west of Montreal. Meteorologist Mich猫le Fleury said the confirmation was based on photos and videos, but a team from Western University鈥檚 Northern Tornadoes Project was en route to confirm its strength and trajectory.

She said it was possible a tornado could have touched down in Ontario as well, though that hasn鈥檛 been confirmed.

In Rigaud, a crew of family and volunteers were picking up pieces of roof and broken trees from the Ferme Carra dairy farm on Tuesday.

Christian Carri猫re, who runs the farm with his family, said he was at home with his girlfriend and son when they heard the sound of objects pinging against the siding, and saw the rain that had been pelting the window suddenly turn to mud.

鈥淚 said, 鈥楬urry up, let鈥檚 go, it鈥檚 a tornado,鈥欌�� said Carri猫re, who rushed his family to the basement.

On Tuesday, he was contemplating the damage to the home, which included broken windows, cracked walls and a block of wood that flew into the kitchen. Pieces of pink insulation were spread across the lawn around a mature tree that lay uprooted on its side.

On the farm, a corner of the dairy barn roof was lifted off, and a second building was largely destroyed after the tornado flung blocks of concrete into it, he said. The cows were unhurt, but Carri猫re believes the damage could be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Next door, renter Maude Caza said she鈥檇 been getting into the bath with her five-year-old son when she lost electricity and heard 30 seconds of intense, roaring wind.

Afterwards, the rural road went into 鈥減anic mode,鈥� she said. 鈥淓veryone went outside, all the neighbours checking to see if everyone was OK.鈥�

The storm hit the side of the home, ripping off and splintering the porch and carrying away a garage and a barn full of chickens. On Tuesday, only the foundations of the barn remained, with not a bird in sight.

鈥淚n that barn there were 100 chickens, and most of them are gone with the tornado,鈥� Caza said.

Tr猫s-Saint-R茅dempteur Mayor Julie Lemieux said the tornado damaged several homes and farm buildings in the community as well as in Rigaud, but officials don鈥檛 believe anyone was injured.

Lemieux said residents received alerts about the storm before it hit, and the municipality responded quickly. She said it鈥檚 something they鈥檝e had to prepare for in recent years as severe storms have become more frequent, which she attributes to climate change.

鈥淎 tornado, it鈥檚 the first in decades, but we have to be prepared for it to happen more often,鈥� she said, stressing the importance of people having an emergency kit ready.

Both Caza and G茅linas said they鈥檇 received alerts on their phones earlier that afternoon warning them of a possible tornado, but said they hadn鈥檛 seen funnel clouds or anything to suggest imminent danger.

G茅linas and his wife Julia Asselstine say they鈥檙e still in shock to see their four years of hard work restoring the property blown away.

鈥淭he roof to my garage is 30 feet up in the tree here, our deck is in the other yard,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he pool is pretty much taken apart. It鈥檚 unbelievable.鈥�

Asselstine, who was at the couple鈥檚 primary home in Montreal, said she got a text from her husband as the storm hit. After that, she couldn鈥檛 reach him and feared the worst as she called again and again.

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