Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective

Hurricane Milton tornado outbreak

2024 tropical cyclone tornado outbreak From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hurricane Milton tornado outbreak
Remove ads

Hurricane Milton's outer bands generated a historic and destructive tornado outbreak as the tropical cyclone neared and tracked across the Florida peninsula on October 8–9, 2024. 46 confirmed tornadoes touched down in the state, with at least three reaching EF3 intensity on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. This was the fourth such hurricane or its remnants to produce an intense (EF3+) tornado in the United States during the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, after Beryl, Debby and Helene. Milton, the second Category 5 hurricane of the season, ultimately weakened to a Category 3 before making landfall in Florida. Six people were confirmed to have died as a result of the tornado outbreak, with an estimated 30 being injured, mostly coming from two EF3 tornadoes: The Lakewood Park-Vero Beach tornado, and the Wellington tornado.

Quick facts Meteorological history, Duration ...

A total of 45 confirmed tornadoes touched down in Florida ahead of the storm between October 8–9, focused on the Florida Heartland, the Treasure Coast and the Space Coast.[1] This became the largest single day of tornadoes in state history, surpassing Hurricane Irma.[2][3] At 6 pm, the National Weather Service office in Miami, which covers much of South Florida except the Florida Keys of Monroe County, reported that they had issued 55 tornado warnings, a record high in one day beating out the previous record of 37 on September 27, 2022, during Hurricane Ian,[4] and confirmed nine tornadoes on a preliminary basis. The NWS in Tampa Bay also set a record high of 29 tornado warnings in one day, beating the previous record of 23 held by both Tropical Storm Debby of 2012 and Tropical Storm Andrea on June 6, 2013.[5][6] In total, a record 126 tornado warnings have been issued throughout the state, the second-most of any state in one day, only behind Alabama on April 27, 2011, at the height of the 2011 Super Outbreak.[7] Milton was also the first tropical cyclone to generate an intense (EF3 or stronger) tornado in Florida since Agnes in 1972 and the third on record since 1950, the first occurring in 1959.[8] Milton also yielded Florida's fifth deadliest outbreak in 70 years, behind the 1998 Kissimmee tornado outbreak, which killed 42; the 2007 Groundhog Day tornado outbreak, which killed 21; the March 31, 1962, outbreak, which killed 17; and the Hurricane Agnes outbreak, which killed seven.[9]

Remove ads

Meteorological synopsis

Summarize
Perspective
Thumb
Track of Hurricane Milton.

Background

See also: Hurricane Milton § Meteorological history

On October 5, a tropical depression developed in the western Gulf of Mexico,[10] strengthening into Tropical Storm Milton shortly thereafter.[11] The storm proceeded to explosively intensify near the Yucatán Peninsula,[12] becoming the 5th-most intense Atlantic hurricane on record on October 7.[13] That same day, as Hurricane Milton approached Florida, the United States's Storm Prediction Center (SPC) outlined a slight risk convective outlook for much of southern Florida, observing that enhanced low to mid-level flow, dew points in the mid 70s, and favorable timing with peak daytime heating would lead to a conducive environment for tornadogenesis as Milton's outer convective bands swept the area.[14] On October 9 at 0600Z, the SPC issued an enhanced risk of severe weather in central and southern Florida as the hurricane approached, with a 10% hatched tornado outlook due to intense convection, MLCAPE at 1500 to 2000 J/Kg, and storm relative helicity values soaring above 350 m2/s2 being forecasted, favoring the development of supercells.[15] Rainbands stretching far from the center allowed the tornado outbreak to stretch further south.[16]

Overview

Thumb
EF3 tornado damage in a Wellington neighborhood.

The outbreak first started late on October 8 with an EF1 tornado striking the west side of Key West.[17] The next day, 45 tornadoes touched down during the morning and afternoon as lines and clusters of supercells impacted South and Central. Two EFU tornadoes moved across I-75 in the Everglades with no serious damage noted.[18] Later, an EF1 tornado caused damage in the Sky Valley neighborhood of Clewiston.[19] A high-end EF2 tornado impacted the western part of Fort Myers before crossing the Caloosahatchee River and striking North Fort Myers, causing extensive damage to homes and knocking down numerous trees in the area.[20] An EF3 tornado, the strongest recorded tornado in southwest Florida's history, struck a neighborhood in the area of Lakeport in Glades County, destroying 39 homes, before weakening and causing minor damage in Brighton Reservation.[21][22] A solar farm in Lake Placid was struck by a tornado, decreasing electricity production.[23]

Clusters of supercells then passed west of the Miami metropolitan area and struck the Treasure Coast, producing several tornadoes. Another EF3 tornado struck a mobile home in Wellington before weakening and traveling northward where it then restrengthened to EF3 intensity and damaged a shopping and residential area in western Palm Beach Gardens before weakening again and eventually dissipating in the area of Jupiter Farms.[22] The most devastating tornado was another low-end EF3 tornado that heavily damaged or destroyed multiple mobile home parks near Fort Pierce. The most severe damage was in the Spanish Lakes community, where over 20 mobile homes were destroyed or flipped, killing six people.[24] The tornado then impacted Vero Beach, where more homes and businesses were damaged before the tornado moved offshore.[25] During the tornado, many lives were reportedly saved on Winter Garden Parkway, as a woman began honking her horn to alert others of the tornadoes.[26] In addition to the fatalities, over 25 people required rescue during the tornado.[27] Overall damage from the tornado was estimated at $514 million.[28][29] A total of nine tornadoes struck the county, including three in the span of 25 minutes.[citation needed] In all, at least nine tornadoes impacted the Treasure Coast. The final tornado was an EF1 tornado in Cocoa Beach that ripped off the roof of a Wells Fargo bank.[30]

Remove ads

Confirmed tornadoes

Summarize
Perspective
More information EFU, EF0 ...

October 8 event

More information EF#, Location ...

October 9 event

More information EF#, Location ...

Port St. Lucie–Fort Pierce–Vero Beach, Florida

Quick facts Meteorological history, Formed ...

This large and deadly EF3 tornado first inflicted damage at the Creekside subdivision and Sunnier Palms Park where homes lost roofs and mobile homes were severely damaged or destroyed. Moving northward, the tornado reached its peak intensity as it partially collapsed two large warehouses. The tornado then tracked through more subdivisions and small communities inflicting significant damage to structures. Damage included homes suffering roof, siding, and soffit damage. The tornado devastated the Spanish Lakes community where over 20 mobile homes were destroyed or flipped by the tornado, although most concrete structures survived.[24] All of the fatalities from the tornado occurred in this location. Concrete structures within the Spanish Lakes community only sustained moderate damage compared to the mobile homes.[25]

Thumb
High-end EF3 damage to the South Florida Logistics Center warehouse near Fort Pierce.

The tornado then crossed into Indian River county into Vero Beach where multiple properties suffered roof and outbuilding damage and healthy trees were toppled or snapped. A Publix suffered broken windows and air conditioning units on the roof of the store were dislodged and tossed to the ground. A car was also flipped over in the parking lot. The tornado then crossed the Indian River onto barrier islands, immediately impacting a condominium upon landfall. Sections of the roof were torn off on the east and west building and thrown northward into a tree line. A pontoon boat was lifted out of the water and landed upside down on a sea wall. Tree limbs were downed and shingles and roof tiles were ripped off of homes and businesses on the barrier island in town. The tornado tracked through a small park, toppling a seagrape tree before moving offshore.[25]

During the tornado, many lives were reportedly saved on Winter Garden Parkway, as a woman began honking her horn to alert others of the tornadoes.[26] In addition to the fatalities, over 25 people required rescue during the tornado.[27] This became one of the deadliest tornadoes spawned by a tropical cyclone in history, and one of the deadliest tornadoes in Florida (the deadliest since 2007).[65]

Remove ads

Aftermath

Thousands of people lost power in Vero Beach due to the tornadoes.[66] A solar farm in Lake Placid was struck by a tornado, decreasing electricity production.[23] Following the tornadoes, several volunteers and a church helped with tornado relief efforts across St. Lucie County.[67] Deputies were stationed around Spanish Lakes to ensure only residents and first responders could enter in the aftermath of the tornado.[68] WPTV-TV partnered with 7 local businesses to fundraise for tornado victims.[69] Emergency response operations began after the tornado outbreak. Multiple counties across the state reported damage to homes, local businesses, power outages, tree damage, and severe damage to mobile homes.[70] A 105-year-old woman sustained a foot injury and a bruised back after an EF1 tornado hit her residence in Port Salerno while inside of a bathroom.[71]

See also

Notes

  1. All dates are based on the local time zone where the tornado touched down; however, all times are in Coordinated Universal Time for consistency.

References

Sources

Loading related searches...

Wikiwand - on

Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.

Remove ads
Remove ads