Overnight tornado ransacks retirement community near Tampa

Neighbors in Seminole, Florida, heard a loud noise that reminded them of a sonic boom when a confirmed EF-0 tornado tore through the gated Boca Ciega Point retirement community early on Sunday morning. 

Some say they heard what they called a wall of loud winds. 

“It’s kind of hard to describe, not really like a sonic boom, but more of a hard pressure sound,” resident Bill Phillips told News Channel 8 Sunday morning.

Residents in the community woke up to wood, metal and aluminum scattered across their yards, house damage as well as toppled trees and light poles. 

At least six homes were damaged as the intense cluster of storms moved onshore near Seminole shortly after a Tornado Warning was issued for Pinellas County around 1 a.m. EDT, the city of Seminole Fire Rescue Assistant Fire Chief Jim Meegan told CNN.

Meegan reports no one was injured, but he did say the outdoor lanais structures on a couple of homes were destroyed, a few rooftop air handlers were lost and a couple of boats docked along the waterway were damaged. He said the damage to the single-story attached condos was mostly structural with all the homes remaining intact.

According to the National Weather Service, an “unknown number of condos were heavily damaged on Boca Ciega Point Blvd.” The NWS said one condo may have had a roof collapse.

The Tampa Bay National Weather Service surveyed the damage mid-Sunday morning and determined an EF-0 tornado touched down.

Bay News 9 reports one home’s fence was left in pieces, and in another area, splintered wood was found, but residents could not identify where it came from.

One local resident, Richard Grande, told Bay News 9 he was sitting outside with his wife when strong winds made them go inside.

“Just very, very loud, windy and crashing, and it’s hard to explain unless you’re in it, you know?” Grande told the local news station.

Grande said the conditions lasted about 30 seconds.

That active weather has calmed down for now, however, cleanup efforts might be delayed as the severe weather risk remains across Florida into Monday.

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