SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Before Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida, tornado touchdowns were reported across the state, including two in western Broward County and a possible tornado in Southwest Miami-Dade.
Traffic cameras on Wednesday morning captured a tornado forming near the toll plaza of Alligator Alley as cars drove down the road.
According to the National Weather Service, two tornadoes crossed Interstate 75 and headed north with speeds reaching up to 25 mph.
The first tornado touched down on the Broward/Collier County line.
A second tornado touched down five miles west of Weston.
Several evacuees from Florida’s Gulf Coast were stunned when they learned the tornadoes were formed.
“Trying to get out of harm’s way, and we’re running into another one,” said Larry Batista. “OK, great. We’re getting away from the hurricane, but here we are, tornadoes now.”
Batista could only hope that the tornado would stay far away from them.
“My hope, and my God, there’s hope. Please let that thing pass,” he said.
Batista and his wife evacuated from Tampa and saw the tornado as they made their way down to South Florida.
“I heard the radio go off, telling me about coming up across the plaza, the Miccosukee over Mile Marker 51, and I’m like, ‘OK. I hope she [wife] doesn’t hear, ”cause she’s in the car, the next car behind me,” he said. “I figure I still have about a half hour before we even get there, so I’m sure, they dissipate really quick. But then, we’re about to hit Weston and hear about another one, she calls me, her niece is calling her from Orlando, ‘Hey, there’s another one in Weston that’s happening. I’m like ‘Oh, great.'”
Batista said he and his wife were heading to his wife’s sister’s home in Miami as Milton approaches the west coast of Florida.
“Hopefully we go to Miami now, and my sister’s house is secured. So hopefully we won’t have any issues there,” said Batista.
Local Weston resident Camela Chavers said she also saw the tornado.
“I was leaving, I was going south, but you can see on my exit that they weren’t letting anyone go north,” she said. “The sheriff had it blocked off right there, where you go 75 North Naples, and I go, ‘What’s going on?’ And I looked up, and I did see the funnel. Like, when that alert went off, it was like, ‘OK, let me run to the store real quick.’ You really don’t think it’s real until it becomes real.”
Chavers said she felt a surreal feeling after locking eyes on the tornado.
“To see a funnel that close, it made it real,” she said.
That same tornado was traveling north along U.S. Route 27, throwing debris around near Clewiston. It may be responsible for knocking over an 18-wheeler off the highway off the Treasure Coast.
Surveillance cameras at Sawgrass Recreation Park in Weston captured the tornado near U.S. Route 27.
A tornado warning was issued earlier for Southwest Ranches, Coral Springs and all western suburbs of Broward County.
The National Weather Service has confirmed the tornadoes that formed in West Broward.
As of 4 p.m. on Wednesday, no structural damage or injuries have been reported in Broward County.
Over in Miami-Dade County, a huge tree was uprooted by what homeowner Mike Slager claimed was a tornado that went through his neighborhood. He said nothing has ever been able to knock down that tree.
“We could hear what sounded like a train coming down 202,” he said.
Slager said that while he was having a cup of coffee on his porch, a possible tornado touched down through the neighborhood in Southwest Miami-Dade.
“And then all hell is breaking loose, and stuff was breaking,” he said. “We both ran inside the house, and in about 30 seconds, it was over.”
When Slager and others came outside, they saw the destruction that was left behind.
“Found the trees down, boat canopies crushed over there, and stuff was all over top of the vehicles,” he said.
Near the corner of 320th Street and 200th Court, debris was everywhere, fences were down, and the huge tree was completely uprooted.
Further up the street, a golf cart was tangled into a downed tree.
“Well, I heard some banging, and wind went through, and I walked outside, and our half of the tree is gone,” said area resident Verra Raulerson.
Other neighbors said they received a tornado warning after the possible tornado went through their neighborhood.
“It came through before we got the warning on our phones, probably 10 minutes,” she said.
It was a frightening moment, but neighbors said they’re glad no one was hurt.
“I just laid down on the floor, ’cause I couldn’t fit under my bed, and it was obvious something bad was happening,” Eric Herstedt said.
“We’re fine, so that’s the main thing,” Slager said. “A lot less than what they are gonna get up north, so I pray for them.”
Crews were cleaning up knocked down trees around Brenda Newton’s farm, located at Southwest 134th Street and 202nd Avenue in Southwest Miami-Dade.
“Just glad to be alive,” she said.
According to Newton, she said a tornado was responsible the damage to her and her neighbor’s property, early Wednesday morning.
“I heard the wind and debris hitting the glass and then my dogs started really getting nervous. I can tell and I’m like I can hear the wind really bad,” said Newton. “I just grabbed the dogs, I run out of the bedroom, and I just stood there in the hallway, and I’m like, ‘Oh my God, oh my God.'”
In a matter of seconds, the force from the possible tornado ripped through her farm, snapping branches in half, lifting up the roof from her farm and uprooted trees.
“Luckily, the tree missed my truck. I normally park it over there,” she said as she pointed toward the fallen tree.
Mother Nature even injured some of Newton’s neighbor’s goats.
“Look at our front fence; it twisted it and took it off where it’s mounted on,” she said.
As of Wednesday evening, the NWS has not confirmed whether or not a tornado did touch down in Miami-Dade County.
A tornado watch was issued for Central Florida, including South Florida and the Florida Keys until 9 p.m. on Wednesday.
Moving up from South Florida, places like Port St. Lucie and Stuart, Florida witnessed tornadoes touching down.
St. Lucie County officials announced Thursday morning that the tornadoes killed at least four people.
Cellphone video captured a driver actually driving through what appeared to be a tornado in the early stages of development, touching down on a road.
More cellphone video from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office captured damage left by that same tornado after ripping through a nearby mobile home park.
St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office deputy shared a video, posted on social media, describing a tornado that brought a nearby building down to the ground.
An 18-wheeler was seen knocked over on its side on the turnpike near Indian River, Wednesday afternoon.
Cellphone video captured apparent tornado damage at Avenir Development in Palm Beach Gardens, including an overturned SUV.
As of 7 p.m. on Wednesday, the Turnpike remained closed while crews worked to clear the area.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.