Damaging winds and pounding rain swept across the bay area on Tuesday as a surprise storm snapped trees, crushed mobile homes and dumped up to 9 inches of rain on some areas.
Nearly three dozen buildings in Citrus County were damaged by the storm, including seven mobile homes that were destroyed, according to the Citrus County Sheriff's Office.
No one was seriously injured, although two people were treated for minor injuries, authorities said.
More wild weather is expected today with up to a 90 percent chance of rain for most of the Tampa Bay area and flood watches in several areas.
The hardest rains Tuesday fell in Hernando County, with 9 inches drenching parts of the Spring Hill area and the northern part of Pasco County, forecasters said.
Pinellas County received, on average, about a half inch of rain. Parts of Tampa received up to 2 inches, and pockets of Citrus County received 3 to 5 inches.
Wind gusts of up to 50 mph were detected in Pinellas and Pasco counties, forecasters said.
The National Weather Service received multiple reports of strong winds and possible tornadoes, but forecasters had confirmed only one tornado, which hit Polk County about 1:45 p.m. and caused minor damage to one brick house and four mobile homes.
About the same time, a passer-by called 911 after seeing a water spout churning near the Howard Frankland Bridge on the Pinellas County side, forecasters said. It never hit land, they said.
The scattered thunderstorms were caused by a low-pressure system in the Panhandle that shot a mass of cool air toward Tampa Bay, said forecasters with the National Weather Service in Ruskin.
The storm temporarily knocked out power to thousands of customers across the state, including several hundred in St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Hernando and Citrus.
The storm sneaked up on emergency management officials without any warning from the National Weather Service, said Citrus County's public safety director, Charles Poliseno.
"It came down hard and fast, and then it came down in waves," he said.
In Hernando County, 86-year-old Penny Penniex waded through debris-laden water that settled at the end of her driveway Tuesday afternoon.
"I had to come in and change my shoes," Penniex said, adding that the flooding has made it impossible to grow flowers in her yard, much less grass. "The water is almost up to my garage door. It is up past my ankles. You can't keep any flowers; they will not last."
Heavy rain and thunderstorms are expected to continue this week, and a flood watch remains in effect for Citrus, Hernando, Levy, Pasco and Sumter counties until 3 p.m. today.
Isolated areas of these counties received 2 to 5 inches of rain Tuesday and could see another 2 to 4 inches today, forecasters said.
Residents living along streams and creeks, or in flood-prone areas, should prepare to move to higher ground, forecasters said.
They predict a return of sunny skies by this weekend.
- Times staff writers Suzannah Gonzales, Justin George and Duane Bourne contributed to this report. Jamie Jones can be reached at 727 893-8455 or jjones@sptimes.com
