Third Tornado Confirmed Amid South Florida Cleanup
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FT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) - As the clean up continues from Tuesday morning's storms, the National Weather Service (NWS) confirmed there was a third tornado.
It was located in Davie. Chief Meteorologist Craig Setzer said it formed near Griffin Road and I-75. It then went East, crossed Tree Tops Park and ended near University Drive and I-595. Setzer said it was not a continuous path but touched down briefly along this track. A NWS team noted numerous trees were downed along a six to seven mile track. They've given the tornado a rating of EF 0 - the least destructive type of tornado with winds near 80 mph.
Throughout the day, tree removal workers and linemen worked on power poles. Piles of tree debris could be seen all over.
Carl Shibel lives near Skylake. Clean up was going on all round him. He was stunned as the storm moved through.
"What I saw was winds swirling around like, unbelievable, everything flying through the air. Just unreal," said Shibel.
Fortunately, crews were able to restore power to Skylake by Wednesday night.
Jen Greenfield and her family ran for cover when they realized a tornado was ripping through their neighborhood.
"I think it picked up the table and blew it right here into my neighbor's yard," said Greenfield. "It started getting louder and louder and that's when we noticed it was just insane in the backyard, things were swirling around, the furniture was moving."
On Tuesday, the NWS said two tornadoes touched down during the storms; one was in Pompano Beach, the other was east of Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens. Both tornadoes were rated EF-1 with wind gusts in the 60 mph to 70 mph range.
The Pompano Beach tornado, which touched down near the city's airpark where the Goodyear blimp is stored, caused damage for a three-mile stretch.
Chopper 4 over a section of eastern Pompano Beach spotted a number of power lines down and buildings with roof damage.
The twister's winds also damaged a barn, toppled trees and flipped trailers at the Sand and Spur Stables which are located on the western edge of the airpark.
"It was like a freight train coming through," said horse owner Joe Pasuit. "All of the sudden it was just black and just everything, the wind, it blew everything, I've never seen anything like it."
Janice Sheer said her horse Elvis ended up with a gash which required stitches.
"He got thrown against the hinge on a door there and the hinge went through his left side," said horse owner Sheer.
Missy Meyer said she got to her stable just as the storm hit.
"By the time I made it into the tack room kind of all heck broke loose, it was very fast and furious probably less than 30 seconds," said Meyer.
A line of thunderstorms with high winds wreaked havoc across Broward County, uprooting trees and damaging vehicles and buildings.
In Hollywood, high winds toppled two trees on top of a mobile home on Arthur Street. The trailers two residents were trapped inside until they were freed by neighbors.
"My walls came down on my head," said homeowner Summer Manning.
The mobile home is a total loss.
The second tornado occurred between Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens and the City of Aventura and headed east. It's believed to have toppled a tractor-trailer on I-95.
The tornado caused some injuries, a fire, damage to roofs and one building was even evacuated.
Jose Castillo lost his car that was much more than transportation for him. It's where he lived. He got out of it just before that tornado whirled through, leaving his car flattened by a tree.
"This is my house. This is my home. This is my car. I lost everything. But I be happy because God bless I am alive," said Castillo.
Cell phone video shows how the tornado tore open a section of the roof at a 37-unit building at northeast 10th avenue and 191st street. Residents were evacuated due to the damage.
Chopper 4 showed damage to units at the Aventura Harbor Complex on northeast 195th Street and 10th Avenue. Not far away, the twister's strong winds displaced tiles on roofs of condominiums.