A 5.5-magnitude earthquake has hit Ontario, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, with tremors reportedly felt as far away as Montreal, Boston and Cleveland.

The epicenter of the quake was 38 miles, north of Ottawa, Canada.

The first tremor hit at 1:40 p.m. ET Wednesday.

Buildings in Toronto and Ottawa were evacuated in the minutes following the tremors.

Cracks also appeared both inside the Parliamentary Press Gallery building in Ottawa, and outside, AFP reported. Some people appeared shaken up, but unhurt.

“Earthquakes across Eastern Canada are definitely rare, but we do have them,” said Johanna Wagstaffe, a CBC seismologist and meteorologist.

“There are small fault lines along Lake Erie and Lake Ontario” and a “relatively active fault line that runs parallel to the St. Lawrence Valley,” she said just minutes after the quake.

The last major earthquake on that fault line measured 5.4 magnitude in 1998, she said.
Office workers shaken

Kathleen Sullivan was working on the eighth floor of an office in downtown Toronto when the quake hit.

“It was very peculiar because we could actually see the plants on our window shelf shaking. By the time we gathered in the hall and figured out it wasn’t our imagination, it stopped. But it was easily a minute of things shaking.”

The quake was felt as far south as Windsor, Ont., along the Canada-U.S. border.

“I was just laying in bed …. and the bed just started to move side to side … just gently,” said Darren Bonnici, who lives on the 10th floor of an apartment building along the city’s riverfront.

“Sort of, almost like a mother would rock a baby in a crib,” said Bonnici, adding the feeling lasted for about five seconds. “I thought right away it must have been an earthquake.”

Canada survived one of the greatest games in Olympic history to beat the Americans 3-2 in overtime and cap the host country’s record gold rush in Vancouver.

Canada beat the United States 3-2 on Sunday to win the Olympic goal medal in its national sport of hockey, with Sidney Crosby scoring the winning goal 7:40 into overtime and setting off a celebration from coast to coast.

The perfect finish to the Olympics for the host country, the gold medal was Canada’s 14th, breaking the record for most won by a nation at a Winter Games. The Soviet Union in 1976 and Norway in 2002 each won 13.

The entire hockey-crazed nation was stunned when Zack Parise scored to tie the game for the U.S. with 24.4 seconds remaining in regulation.

But Crosby’s shot from the lower part of the left circle eluded goalie Ryan Miller, and Canada Hockey Place erupted in deafening cheers.

“It doesn’t feel real. It feels like a dream. It just feels like dream,” Crosby said. “Our team worked so unbelievably hard. Today was really tough, especially when they got the goal late in regulation. But we came back and got it in overtime.”

Minutes after the game ended, delirious fans chanted, “Crosby! Crosby! Crosby!” and International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge gestured with both hands, calling for more cheers, before presenting Crosby with the gold medal. Celebrations spilled into streets of cities across the country.

Hours earlier, long lines had formed outside Vancouvers bars and restaurants as red-clad fans sought the perfect place to watch the game.

As “O Canada” played, the Canadian team stood shoulder to shoulder, arms over each others’ shoulders. The U.S. team stood dejected, staring at the ice, many with their hands on their hips.
In one of the greatest games in Olympic history, Canada’s collection of all-stars held off a young U.S. team that had upset the hosts 5-3 in round-robin play a week earlier. That loss forced the Canadians to play an extra game to reach the gold medal match.

Crosby had been scoreless the previous two games, but he had two post-regulation game-winners at these Olympics. He beat Switzerland with a shootout goal during the round robin.
It was close. It was nerve-racking. It was a game worthy of a gold-medal Olympic hockey final. And, for the disappointed Americans, it was a monumental letdown in a tournament in which they were almost perfect.

“It’s devastating,” U.S. defenseman Jack Johnson said. “It was the biggest game any of us have played in.”

Canada is the Olympic champion in men’s hockey, and the whole country can finally celebrate its Winter Games.

The 2010 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony in Vancouver, Canada was a three hour event that brought the glitz of sports to the homes of the world. There were lights, ceremony, tradition and even in the end, a bit of drama.

Canadian pop music ability shone blithely tonight at the aperture ceremonies for the 21st Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. One of the top agreeable highlights was a beauteous achievement of Canadian poet/songwriter Leonard Cohen’s song “Hallelujah” by Canadian accompanist k.d. lang. She aboriginal recorded the song in 2004 for her anthology Hymns of the 49th Parallel. She as well performed “Hallelujah” at the 2005 Juno Awards. In the accomplished three years the song has taken on iconic status. In 2008 American Idol adversary Jason Castro delivered a achievement that generated such absorption in the song that Jeff Buckley’s abundant admired 1994 recording of “Hallelujah” topped the Billboard Digital Tracks chart. Later in that aforementioned year X Factor champ Alexandra Burke topped the UK pop singles blueprint with her adaptation and Jeff Buckley’s “Hallelujah” hit #2. More afresh Justin Timberlake went to #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 with his estimation of “Hallelujah” from the Hope For Haiti Now telethon.

The world got to see the beauty of Canada as well. Offering their country as the host for the 2010 Olympics, there was no doubt the world took away scenic beauty that would have never been seen otherwise.

Earlier in the ceremonies top Canadian pop stars Nelly Furtado and Bryan Adams performed a affiliation on a song blue-blooded “Bang the Drum” accounting by Adams. Sarah McLachlan abutting the array of stars with a abandoned achievement at the piano. In addition able accolade to Canadian pop music, Joni Mitchell’s archetypal “Both Sides Now” provided the accomplishments for a affective aeriform and ball performance. Finally, Anne Murray, one of the bestselling Canadian pop singers of all time, was one of the notable Canadian personalities called to backpack the official Olympic banderole into the stadium.

Vancouver, of course, seemed the perfect candidate for the 2010 edition. Unlike its megahyped predecessor in Beijing in 2008, a Canadian-based Olympics offered no fodder for human rights protests, no platform for a nation looking to trumpet its superpower status. Yes, the host country came into these games intent on junking its identity as good-sport and Olympic doormat. “The games are ours,” said Marcel Aubut, the president-elect of the Canadian Olympic Committee insisted on Thursday. “We’re going to own the podium.”

It’s only the third time that Canada has been lucky enough to host the Olympics and the host cities of Vancouver and Whistler are gearing up for what is promising to be an electrifying games.

The Western Canadian cities are expecting an influx of nearly a million visitors, athletes and journalists from around the world during the 17 days of competition.

Hundreds of millions of people are expected to tune in on televisions around the world for the event, which begins at 6 p.m. local time (9 p.m. ET). There will be no worries about the weather; these are the first ceremonies to be held in a domed stadium. The opening ceremonies will be on Friday night.

Canada hopes to make a good impression on viewers of the games, which will take place over 17 days.

“Hosting these games is an achievement on the world stage that all British Columbians and all Canadians can be proud of,” British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell said. “Together, we have welcomed the world with open arms to see and experience our nation, our province and our communities.”

Singers Bryan Adams and Sarah McLachlan will be among the acts at the opening ceremonies, and one of the highlights will be a ski jumper leaping through the Olympic rings, according to the Ottawa Sun.

The Olympics are a point of national pride for this nation, which failed to win a gold medal at the Calgary Games in 1988. Canada has poured a reported $117 million into its Own the Podium program, designed to create a team that leads the total medal count at these games. That should take at least 27 medals, three more than 2006 when Canada was third in the medal count.

“I’ll make you two promises,” said Gary Lunn, Canadian minister of state for sport. “We’re going to win gold. We’re going to win gold at home for the first time. Our Canadian team will do better than they ever have before.”

But not every Canadian is excited about the games. Protest organizers have said they hope to launch a large demonstration Friday night outside BC Place, site of the ceremony. They will gather blocks away, then march toward the facility just before the ceremony begins. They will be protesting many things, including the money spent on the games.

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge appeared undaunted, saying that his organization welcomes protests as an outlet of freedom of expression.

While weather is not a concern for the opening ceremonies, the unseasonably warm temperatures have brought little snow to the area. But Olympic officials and athletes have said too much has been made of the conditions and that the courses in Whistler, two hours to the north, and nearby Cypress Mountain will be ready.