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Tornadoes Confirmed In Pinellas, Pasco Counties
The National Weather Service has teams out assessing damage in both counties.
A radar view at 655 AM of a confirmed tornado in eastern Pinellas County as it approached the entrance to the Courtney Campbell Causeway.
Posted by US National Weather Service Tampa Bay Florida on Thursday, April 7, 2016
CLEARWATER, FL — A strong line of thunderstorms that moved through the Tampa Bay area early Thursday morning is responsible for numerous damage reports in both Pinellas and Pasco counties where tornado activity has also been confirmed.
The National Weather Service in Ruskin has confirmed a tornado in eastern Pinellas County. Three townhomes in Clearwater were damaged when trees fell in the 3200 block of Brigadoon Drive, Clearwater Fire & Rescue reported Thursday morning. It is unclear at this time if that damage is related to the confirmed tornado.
The city of Clearwater released a number of photos of storm damage Thursday morning. Felled trees and power lines were among the biggest issues reported.
See Also:
- Clearwater Storm Damage Widespread
- Possible Pasco Tornado: 24 Homes, Businesses Damaged
- Where To Report Pasco County Storm Damage
- Clearwater Storm Damage Photos
- Pasco County Storm Damage Photos
Pasco County officials' suspicion that a tornado might be to blame for damage reported in the New Port Richey and Port Richey areas was confirmed Thursday morning by the National Weather Service. County spokesman Doug Tobin reported at 10:40 a.m. that the initial assessment from the weather service's Daniel Noah indicates an EF 0 tornado touched down in Pasco County.
"He said the damage appears to be in a narrow line from the Gulf of Mexico to just east of U.S. 19," Tobin wrote in an email to media.
Possible #tornado captured this morning at the county's Emergency Response Building on Drew Street in Clearwater.
Posted by Pinellas County Government on Thursday, April 7, 2016
A final assessment report from the weather service is expected later on Thursday. An EF 0 tornado can produce wind gusts of 65-85 mph, according to the weather service.
As of 8:20 a.m., Tobin said damage had been reported at 24 homes and businesses along U.S. 19, primarily in the Port Richey area.
The National Weather Service has sent a damage assessment team into both counties, meteorologist Charlie Paxton told Patch. More information on the extent of damage and the intensity of the tornadoes in Pinellas and Pasco counties is expected later on Thursday.
Pasco County released photos of some of the damage its assessors encountered following Thursday's storms.
Confirmed #tornado damage in Clearwater #Florida. Multiple trees down; homes damaged. More damage in Pasco County pic.twitter.com/bxmH5bPhyX
— Sean O'Reilly (@SeanWFTS) April 7, 2016
Photo courtesy of the National Weather Service
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