A wave of severe weather from a deadly storm system hit northern Florida on Friday, destroying homes, causing widespread power outages and killing at least one person.
Local officials said several tornadoes could form across the Florida Panhandle, including the state capital of Tallahassee. National Weather Service teams have not yet confirmed whether a tornado touched down.
A woman was killed when a tree fell on a home in Tallahassee, the Leon County Sheriff's Office said in a statement. Local K-12 schools across the city, as well as Florida State University and Florida A&M University, are closed for the day. Some city, county and state offices are also closed.
This week's storms have devastated communities from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast. National Weather Service field offices have confirmed 70 tornadoes between Tuesday and Thursday, including a dozen each in Missouri and Ohio.
Tornadoes and violent storms have killed at least four people and injured many more. Intensive cleanup and recovery efforts continued Friday across the central and eastern U.S.
Homes destroyed, Florida State University facilities damaged
Among the buildings that sustained significant damage in Tallahassee on Friday morning were two of Florida State University's main venues: Dick Hauser Stadium, home of the FSU baseball team, and a tent for the university's historic “Flying High” circus show .
The National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, which was also damaged in Friday's storm, was opened “as a precaution,” Florida State University spokesman Dennis Schnittke told the Tallahassee Democrat on the USA TODAY Network. The laboratory has suspended user operations on high-field magnets next week.
MagLab has the strongest magnets in the world. Since its founding in 1994, more than 30,500 physicists, chemists, biologists and engineers from 54 countries have worked at the laboratory, and 1,700 scientists use the laboratory for research each year. Local legend has long held that MRI guided the storm around Florida's capital.
“I can't believe it,” said Tallahassee resident Kathy Bryant, whose house was crushed by a large pine tree. Several of her neighbors helped her collect her family photos and insulin, which was trapped in the former kitchen.
“Thank God my kids aren't here,” she told the USA TODAY Network's Tallahassee Democrat, talking about her granddaughter who occasionally spends sleepovers with her.
Northwest Florida residents hit by storm damage
About 200 miles west of Tallahassee, residents in Northwest Florida also reported severe damage and widespread power outages. Santa Rosa County Commissioner James Calkins said he received reports of 25 to 30 homes damaged by the storm.
In Escambia County, officials said there were several trees blocking roads but no structural damage was reported. Emergency manager Travis Tompkins said there were several “close calls” with trees narrowly missing homes. In one incident, a tree fell in front of a mobile home and first responders had to remove it so people could escape.
Several northwest Florida school districts and parks also announced closures Friday due to power outages and debris from the storm. All facilities in the sprawling Blackwater River State Forest have been closed as forestry officials expect the cleanup to take several days.
Florida governor declares state of emergency
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 12 counties Friday afternoon in the wake of the deadly storm. The executive order said the tornado and high winds severely damaged critical infrastructure, including homes, businesses and power lines.
“Following the severe weather affecting North Florida this morning, I have directed the Florida Department of Emergency Management to work with local officials to do everything possible to get our residents back to normal life as quickly as possible,” DeSantis wrote Friday morning. “Thank you to the first responders and utility workers working to restore power and roads.”
According to the city of Tallahassee, approximately 70,000 utility customers in the city reported outages. City officials said the storm had winds between 80 and 100 mph, noting that the National Weather Service was assessing the paths of three possible tornadoes.
Millions in Southeast face threat from severe weather
The Storm Prediction Center said nearly 2 million people in northern Florida and southern Georgia are at increased risk from severe weather, with Jacksonville and Valdosta being the cities most at risk. The broader area from eastern Mississippi to the Carolinas faces a slight to marginal risk of severe weather conditions.
More than 150,000 homes and businesses were without power across the Florida Panhandle on Friday, according to a USA TODAY tracking report. Tens of thousands of utility customers reported outages in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee and North Carolina.
School districts in Tennessee, Georgia, Florida and other southeastern states are either delaying the start of classes or canceling classes for the day due to severe weather, while recovery efforts continue in Tennessee.
Rainfall in Northeast and Plains could disrupt Mother's Day plans
While it's expected to be a great Mother's Day weekend for much of the country, rain is expected across the Northeast and Plains that could derail some outdoor plans.
Showers are expected across parts of the Mid-Atlantic and New England Saturday into Sunday, according to AccuWeather meteorologists. The threat of showers will remain across the central Appalachians and mid-Atlantic on Mother's Day, though the wet weather may taper off in the afternoon.
A surface front over the southwestern United States will bring intermittent showers and thunderstorms across the central and southern Plains and Four Corners areas through Saturday, the National Weather Service said. More severe storms are possible in parts of West Texas by Sunday night.
The system is expected to gradually push eastward from Saturday night into Sunday, expanding the chance of rain across the central and southern Plains, the weather service said. A dry weekend is expected along the West Coast and Southeast (except South Florida).
Contributors: Jeff Burlew, William Hatfield, Ana Goñi-Lessan, Tallahassee Democrat; Jim Little, Pensacola News Journal
