Video shows wrath of Wellington tornado tearing through home before Hurricane Milton made landfall
WELLINGTON - A dramatic new video obtained by CBS News Miami captures the destructive force of a tornado that tore through Wellington just hours before Hurricane Milton made landfall on Florida's west coast.
Wellington homeowner Brad Parker shared surveillance footage from his home, showing how a calm Wednesday afternoon turned into chaos in an instant. The video reveals fierce winds ripping apart the screened enclosure around his pool within seconds.
"We lost the screen out back, and most of our bay windows were sucked out of the house," Parker said. "There was a lot of glass damage where the screen came down. You can see the tornado pulling everything toward it, and even the large grills were tossed around in just a few seconds."
Fortunately, Parker and his family were not home when the tornado struck.
"We used to live in Dallas and expected tornadoes there, but I never thought I'd see something like this in Florida," he said. "I'm not sure there's anything you can do to fully prepare for a tornado."
Parker's home is near the Wellington National Golf Course, where other homes also suffered significant damage. Alan Cooke, who built his Wellington home in 1998, described how quickly the tornado struck.
"We got an alert about tornado activity, and less than a minute later, we were in the kitchen cooking. My daughter heard a noise and said, 'I think it's a tornado,'" Cooke recalled. "It blew out our sliding glass door, and my daughter's windows shattered, causing a change in pressure inside the house. Her sheets and laptop were sucked out of the window."
Cooke, like Parker, was covered by homeowner's insurance, which will help with the extensive repairs needed.
Next door, Alex Gilmurray, a 32-year Wellington resident, also experienced damage. "Our pool enclosure was destroyed," he said. "We have impact windows, but if we didn't, I probably wouldn't have put up shutters. People who didn't have shutters lost their windows."
The tornado caused widespread damage from Loxahatchee to Wellington, affecting homes, businesses and even a Publix supermarket. Residents are now left dealing with the aftermath as they brace for the continued impact of Hurricane Milton.