EF2 Tornado — Pinellas, Florida

2020-12-16 · near Ulmerton, Pinellas, Florida

Event narrative

Tornado formed near Bayou Club near Pinellas Park, then crossed Belcher Road and hit an industrial park where the greatest damage was observed. Buildings had uplift and removal of roof decking, outer walls collapsed. Two buildings were destroyed and five had major

damage. Several buildings in a boat storage facility had major damage and large 2-ton boats where thrown about. The damage became more spotty as it approached U.S. Highway 19. Insulation debris collected on a fence near the Saint Pete/Clearwater International Airport. Video on social media showed the tornado crossing the Howard Franklin Bridge (Interstate 275) with debris and a light pole dropping in front of the observer. The tornado then weakened and lifted as it reached the eastern edge of the Howard Franklin Bridge with no further damage observed. In total, 4 warehouses were destroyed with 9 receiving major damage and 6 others receiving minor damage. 1 home received major damage and 17 others received minor damage.

Wider weather episode

Low pressure in the Gulf of Mexico moved into the Florida Panhandle with a trailing cold front moving through West Central Florida in the afternoon. A surge of moisture ahead of the front created a brief opportunity for strong and locally severe storms. The strongest thunderstorm cell tracked from central Pinellas County to north of Plant City, then into north Lakeland, dropping a tornado sporadically along its path.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (27.8637, -82.7524)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 926779. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.