It was a wet, windy, and messy night in southern Ontario as cyclone Sandy spinned her way through the east coast, leaving one dead and widespread destruction in her wake.

Toronto police say a huge gust of wind caused a business sign to fall apart Monday night, killing a woman with flying debris.

The incident occurred on Keele Street, near St. Clair Avenue, at around 7:30 p.m. Witnesses said the sign could be seen swaying back and forth.

The woman, who has yet to be publicly identified by police, is Ontario's first victim of the powerful superstorm, a force that carried hurricane-strength winds and wreaked havoc south of the border.

Police said the woman was walking alone when winds reached 64 kilometres-per-hour, breaking the sign and fatally injuring her in the process.

Sandy made landfall along the coast of southern New Jersey just before 8 p.m. but the storm caused damage and widespread power outages across Toronto before the cyclone even reached its full potential.

About 3,500 customers in Toronto reported being without power, a spokesperson for Toronto Hydro told CP24 at around 8 p.m. By Tuesday at 5 a.m., that number jumped to about 55,000 customers across the city.

HydroOne reported having about 94,000 customers without power across southern Ontario. A large chunk of those outages were being reported in Chatham and Walkerton.

In Mississauga, 2,000 customers reported being without power. Most of the outages were based in south Mississauga, according to Ennersource.

Property damage

Dozens of properties were damaged by downed wires and trees uprooted from soggy grounds.

At least three cars parked on Bellevue Avenue near College Street suffered major damage when they were hit by a large tree branch. Cars were also damaged by a downed tree on De Grassi Street.

On Quebec Avenue, an SUV caught fire after wires fell on top of it. On Front Street, near Bathurst Street, an airport limo was heavily damaged after a roof of a low-rise building collapsed on top of the vehicle.

Scattered garbage, debris and leaves made a mess of local walkways.

To see photos of the storm damage, click here.

Police also warned drivers about several malfunctioning traffic lights. Motorists are being cautioned to treat those traffic lights as four-way stop signs.

As of 6:15 a.m., the lone school closures to report in the GTA are Crestwood Upper School and Lower School, a private school, and Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College. Public school boards have said they will make their decision Tuesday morning.

Wind warning ends for Toronto

Rain and severe winds were reported as the weather worsened overnight.

“The worst of the winds will be experienced across southern Ontario including the GTA between 1 a.m. and 4 a.m.,” said CP24 meteorologist Chris Potter. “Peak wind gusts will be in excess of 90 kilometres-an-hour in some locations.”

A wind warning for the GTA was lifted at about 6 a.m., after wind gusts as fierce as 90 to 100 kilometres-per-hour were reported across the region.

“The winds will gradually decrease during the day (Tuesday), however, remnants of Sandy will stick around Ontario until the end of the work week,” Potter said.

In Canada, Ontario will get the worst of the massive storm, largely due to the wind, said Environment Canada warning preparedness meteorologist Geoff Coulson.

On the water, "storm force" winds of 48 to 63 knots are expected on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River.

A total of 20 to 40 millimetres of rain is likely due to Sandy’s effects, especially across the Niagara Region to St. Thomas, Environment Canada said.

Sandy was also causing chaos for air travellers looking to fly out of or into the city. 

Twenty-eight per cent of Monday's incoming flights to Pearson International Airport were cancelled, according to the Greater Toronto Airport Authority. Nearly 28 per cent of outgoing flights were also cancelled.

Widespread cancellations were also reported at Billy Bishop Airport on Toronto's island.

Emergency preparedness

Because of the storm, emergency officials encouraged people to prepare an emergency kit, just in case their home loses power for an extended period of time. The kit should contain bottled water, non-perishable food items, candles, flashlights and extra batteries, and a radio.

During a power outage, intersections where traffic signals are not working should be treated as all-way stops.

People are asked to secure lawn furniture, garbage bins, Halloween decorations and other loose objects on their properties, including their balconies.

The city is asking property owners for their help to prevent street and basement flooding.

Myles Currie, the city’s director of transportation services, said his department’s biggest concern is clogged catch basins.

City employees are looking for trouble spots as they patrol neighbourhoods, but Currie asked property owners to help out and clear catch basins and storm drains that are clogged by fallen leaves and other debris.

If possible, people can help out by removing leaves from the street in front of their home, Currie said.

Flood threat

Emergency Management Ontario is warning about the possibility of localized flooding in low-lying areas.

Because of the rainfall, swollen streams will be flowing faster than usual, creating dangerous conditions along riverbanks.

Toronto and Region Conservation is warning people to be cautious near bodies of water.

Motorists should avoid driving through flooded low-lying areas and roads, especially at underpasses, the organization said.

Halloween

In addition to warning about heavy rain and strong winds, meteorologists are also talking about the possibility of snow.

Wet snow is possible over the Haliburton and Dundalk Highlands on Monday night, as temperatures flirt with the freezing mark, but accumulations may not be significant, Environment Canada said.

Meanwhile, the storm is expected to weaken later Tuesday and on Halloween, but the weather will remain cool, damp and breezy for trick-or-treaters Wednesday night, according to the special weather statement.

The week is looking fairly miserable, with Environment Canada predicting rain Monday to Friday. Daytime highs will range between 6 C and 13 C.

@Sandie Benitah and @ChrisKitching are on Twitter. Don't forget, for instant breaking news, follow @CP24 on Twitter.