Thunderstorms returned to Florida with a vengeance Tuesday afternoon, spinning up three tornadoes south of Brevard County, in Indian River and St. Lucie counties. Although all three tornadoes were on the weaker end of the spectrum of the Enhanced Fujita, or EF, tornado intensity scale, they did cause damage.
The first tornado touched down in Vero Beach Highlands in Indian River County at 2:48 p.m. During it's quarter-mile path, this 100-yard-wide EF-1 tornado kicked out winds of 80-90 mph and hit two homes with major damage and 16 homes with minor damage. The damage from this tornado is estimated at almost $400,000.
The second tornado hit Lakewood Park in St. Lucie County at 2:51 p.m. and was an EF-1 with winds of 80-90 mph. This 75-yard-wide tornado tracked one half-mile on the ground, damaging 15 homes.
The third tornado hit Fort Pierce in St. Lucie County with winds of 65-75 mph. An EF-0, it touched down in a mobile home park at 3:15 p.m. just west of the Saint Lucie County Airport and tracked almost a mile, blowing over four RVs and damaging several mobile homes.
In addition to the tornadoes, 11.22 inches of rain fell in Vero Beach Monday, making it the wettest day in recorded history. That is to say, more rain fell in Vero Beach Monday than during any other one-day period, including during the tropical storms or hurricanes that have hit Vero Beach since 1942.
Chief Meteorologist Tom Terry was tracking the storms live on Facebook as they developed Tuesday afternoon, and we're tracking another round of scattered storms Wednesday late afternoon and evening. Remember, if any weather alerts are issued for your neighborhood, you'll get them on your smartphone if you download our app.
Cox Media Group
