Two of the busiest areas of the downtown core were declared off limits Wednesday, after pieces of some signs on a bank tower came loose in the
gusty winds.
Police say three of the four CIBC marquees, which tower 58-storeys above the ground at
199 Bay St., began flapping dangerously and were in danger of plunging to the street below. Some pieces apparently did come off, but no one was hit.
Police immediately decided to cordon off the area as a precaution. As a result, Bay from Front to Richmond and King St. from York to Yonge have been shut down. They may not reopen until the winds die down or the signs can be secured. So far, no one's able to say when that will be.
"It's entirely up to the engineers that are doing the work," explained Sgt. Peter Harmsen.
"There was a significant amount of traffic that was detoured and it also affected the TTC," he adds.
Police warn more streets in the area could be blocked off if the danger spreads.
If some of this sounds eerily familiar, it's because we went through something similar last year. In March 2007, part of the downtown core - including the Gardiner - was shut down after ice that had formed on the CN Tower began to
fall off onto the ground below. It stayed that way for several days before officials were able to get rid of it.
To see footage from that event In The Raw,
click here.