Last Updated Thursday, July 15, 2021 6:22PM EDT
Barrie city councillor Natalie Harris said it happened quickly.
Harris was visiting her son and dogs at her ex-husband's home Thursday afternoon when she said he called and advised them to go to the basement.
Holding on to her son, Harris told CP24, she saw that "something was clearly happening" outside and dust started to come down in the basement.
"If you could imagine Mother Nature ripping half your house off -- that's loud," Harris said. "It was just so loud, and the power went out."
"I thought maybe this is it. Honestly, we didn't know when it would end. And there was no question it was hitting our house."