Residents in at least two southern Ontario towns counted themselves lucky to be alive Friday as they surveyed the aftermath of tornadoes that tore through their communities on Thursday.

A house damaged by severe weather on Thursday at Georgian Peaks Ski Club, near Collingwood, Ont. (Submitted by Darko Naumovski)At least four suspected tornadoes ripped across the region, killing a boy and displacing hundreds of families when their homes were destroyed. Despite the severity of the storms, only a few injuries were reported.

In Vaughan, just north of Toronto, a man who had been forced to leave his home after it was extensively damaged suffered a heart attack on Friday morning and was in a coma, a local fire official said.

Jeff Reinhart was working out at a gym in Durham, about 50 kilometres south of Owen Sound, on Thursday afternoon when a tornado tore apart the building and lifted him into the air.

"The roof was out, the walls were down, and all I know I was 30 feet down the building against a door, clinging for my life," said Reinhart, whose left hand and arm were bandaged. "I thought I was dreaming … I didn't even think it was real."

Residents in Vaughan traded stories and cleaned up what they could on Friday.

Carm Spinelli said she was in her living room when the storm hit.

"It was a big roar. I never heard anything like that in my life," said Spinelli, who is staying with relatives because she hasn't been allowed back into her home. "When I actually came outside and saw all of that, I actually went into shock."

Like other residents, she said her next step will be to talk to her insurance company about fixing the damage.

Several streets of a residential neighbourhood in Vaughan were closed by police, but those allowed back in said they had never seen anything like this in Canada. Tree limbs, fences and brick were strewn across streets. Some houses had gaping holes and exposed roof beams, while others were untouched by the storm.

With files from The Canadian Press