A large thunderstorm swept in from the sea and hit Florida’s Mexico Beach early on Monday morning after warnings of a tornado threat. There was also a risk of flash flooding in the area, forecasters warned.
In an X post, meteorologist Jim Cantore called the storm “dangerous” and said trailers and RVs in the area had been overturned.
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Tallahassee had severe thunderstorm warnings in place for Gulf County in Florida’s panhandle as well as Southern Liberty and Franklin counties in the Big Bend of Florida.
It recorded wind gusts of 60 miles per hour, with the NWS saying that people should “expect damage to roofs, siding, and trees.”
The severe thunderstorms were “located along a line extending from 7 miles south of Wewahitchka to near White
City to 30 miles southwest of Tyndall Air Force Base, moving east at 20 mph,” the NWS alert said.
The thunderstorm warnings were in place until 9:45 a.m. EDT. The NWS urged people to be alert to the threat of tornadoes until the worst of the weather had passed.
“Remain alert for a possible tornado! Tornadoes can develop quickly from severe thunderstorms,” the NWS added. “If you spot a tornado go at once into the basement or small central room in a sturdy structure. For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a building.”
Hurricane Melissa Sweeps Into Jamaica
Further south, Jamaica was braced for the “catastrophic” and life-threatening impact of Hurricane Melissa, which is tearing through the Caribbean.
Melissa has strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds that increased to over 160 mph.
“Seek shelter now,” warned the National Hurricane Center (NHC) in an update published late Sunday evening Eastern time.
“Damaging winds and heavy rainfall tonight and Monday will cause catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding and numerous landslides before potentially devastating winds arrive Monday night and Tuesday morning,” it added.
On Monday morning, Jamaica felt tropical storm conditions as outer rain bands from Melissa swept over the island.
Periods of intense, wind-driven rainfall were expected to persist throughout the day, triggering life-threatening flash flooding and landslides well ahead of the storm’s core.
The most severe impacts are forecast to arrive Monday evening into early Tuesday as Melissa turns north.
The NHC has warned of “extensive infrastructural damage” and “long-lasting power and communication outages” due to the storm’s powerful winds.
Storm surge remains a major concern, with water levels projected to rise 9 to 13 feet above ground near and east of Melissa’s landfall point. Combined with large, battering waves, the surge poses a serious threat to low-lying coastal communities.
