Unnamed Tropical System Spins Off Tornadoes

Reports of two tornadoes came out last night from Central Florida - damage was reported in Eustis, and there was an unconfirmed report of a tornado near Leesburg, across the lake to the west. It was unclear when the tornadoes hit; the NWS reports said 9:41 and 10:59 and the news media indicated 11:00 and midnight. All of this was west of the center of the unnamed tropical system in the Gulf of Mexico. A waterspout was also reported yesterday afternoon.

Central Florida News has an article, photos and videos about the storm. Hours before the tornadoes hit, I made an eerie prediction in my blog about possible tornadoes that was picked up by a Tampa newspaper, not because I had a sixth sense, but simply because when you're underneath the circulation of a tropical system, spinoff tornadoes are always possible. Looking at the radar loops above, the storms didn't look impressive on but tornadoes in tropical systems are often small and hard to detect on radar. Here's a map of Eustis, Florida:

News4Jax.com has some impressive photos and an article(WARNING: When I visited that website, it attempted to install spyware on my computer through deceptive advertising so be careful to say "Cancel" to all prompts if you see them). They say:

They also say that residents spotted the tornado outside, despite the fact that it was after dark (perhaps it was illumited by lightning).

For more information on the forecast and effects of this storm, check our Breaking Weather News Stories (PREMIUM | PRO) or our our New Video Page (PREMIUM | PRO), which includes the breaking weather video shown below.

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