The Canadian capital Ottawa was exposed on the evening of today, Saturday, to a severe thunderstorm accompanied by rain, hail, and strong winds that led to a power outage in large parts of the Canadian capital Ottawa and the stoppage of gas stations, which caused severe traffic congestion.

A strong storm destroyed trees and power lines throughout Ottawa this afternoon, Saturday, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without electricity.

For his part, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said the city's Emergency Operations Center had been activated, "with the full compliment of city and hydro crews out clearing roads and restoring power."

On the other hand, the Ottawa paramedic unit asked residents to call 911 only in emergencies in order to reduce pressure, as it is dealing with many emergency calls across the city.