We have had some nasty afternoon storms over the past couple of days. That isn't anything unusual for us this time of year. They are usually full of lightning, wind, and heavy rain and last for an hour or two before clearing out. What we don't normally see here in Florida are tornadoes. We get the occasional tornado watch when circulation is found in the severe storms, but it isn't something that happens with every storm. Anyway... I had chemistry and then lab yesterday. I was leaving lab at about 2:00 and noticed the sky was very dark. When I got into my car I heard the tail end of the emergency broadcast system alarm, but the music immediately followed so I assumed it was just a test. I continued heading toward home and noticed that there was something strange about the weather. I can't really explain it, other than to say it was strange.
I exit off of the highway just before crossing a fairly large bridge. As I near my exit, the bridge and river become visible. When I reached this point yesterday, I saw it. A tornado! Well, I guess it was actually a water spout at that point... I was scared and excited at the same time. People were pulling off to the side of the road and getting out of their cars to watch it. I kept going... I did slow down a bit to get a better look, but was worried about where it would go and wanted to get home asap. I went inside and got Brody and Dori into the office with me so I could check the weather report. I found out the storm was moving east, which was away from my house.
I went outside and talked to my neighbor who arrived home a little after I did. He was coming home from the direction of the bridge. He said as he went across the tornado was right near him... He said he had never been more scared in his life. This wasn't a large tornado/ water spout, in fact the weather report said the winds in it were no more than 80 mph. It was still scary and exciting all the same!
Here are a few of the news reports, which include pictures as well.
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/t...?storyid=64291
http://www.news4jax.com/weather/9804558/detail.html
I exit off of the highway just before crossing a fairly large bridge. As I near my exit, the bridge and river become visible. When I reached this point yesterday, I saw it. A tornado! Well, I guess it was actually a water spout at that point... I was scared and excited at the same time. People were pulling off to the side of the road and getting out of their cars to watch it. I kept going... I did slow down a bit to get a better look, but was worried about where it would go and wanted to get home asap. I went inside and got Brody and Dori into the office with me so I could check the weather report. I found out the storm was moving east, which was away from my house.
I went outside and talked to my neighbor who arrived home a little after I did. He was coming home from the direction of the bridge. He said as he went across the tornado was right near him... He said he had never been more scared in his life. This wasn't a large tornado/ water spout, in fact the weather report said the winds in it were no more than 80 mph. It was still scary and exciting all the same!
Here are a few of the news reports, which include pictures as well.
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/t...?storyid=64291
http://www.news4jax.com/weather/9804558/detail.html
