Tornado touchdowns were reported across Florida before Milton – including in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports

SOUTHWEST OF MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – Before Hurricane Milton reached Florida, tornadoes were reported across the state, including two in western Broward County and a possible tornado in southwest Miami-Dade.

Traffic cameras captured a tornado forming near the Alligator Alley toll plaza Wednesday morning as cars drove down the road.

According to the National Weather Service, two tornadoes crossed Interstate 75 and moved north at speeds of up to 25 miles per hour.

The first tornado touched down on the Broward/Collier County line.

A second tornado touched down five miles west of Weston.

Several evacuees on Florida's Gulf Coast were stunned when they learned the tornadoes had formed.

“I'm trying to stay out of danger and we get into another one,” Larry Batista said. “OK, great. We escape the hurricane, but here we are now, tornadoes.”

Batista could only hope that the tornado would stay away from them.

“My hope, and my God, there is hope. Please let this thing happen,” he said.

Batista and his wife evacuated Tampa and saw the tornado heading toward South Florida.

“I heard the radio go on and tell me that I came through the place, the Miccosukee over Mile Marker 51, and I thought, 'Okay. I hope she (wife) doesn't hear it, “because she's in the car, the next car behind me,” he said. “I guess I still have about half an hour until we get there, so I'm sure they'll disperse very quickly. But then we are about to reach Weston and hear about another event. She calls me, her niece calls her from Orlando: “Hey, there's another event going on in Weston.” I'm like, 'Oh, great.'”

Batista said he and his wife were on their way to his wife's sister's home in Miami when Milton approached Florida's west coast.

“Hopefully we're going to Miami now and my sister's house is secured. Hopefully we don’t have any problems there,” said Batista.

Camela Chavers, a Weston resident, said she also saw the tornado.

“I wanted to leave, I went south, but from my exit you can see they didn't let anyone go north,” she said. “The sheriff has it cordoned off right where you go, 75 North Naples, and I'm like, 'What's going on?' And I looked up and saw the funnel. For example, when that alarm went off, it was like, 'Okay, let me run to the store real quick.' You really don't believe it's real until it becomes real.”

Chavers said she felt a surreal feeling after seeing the tornado.

“Seeing a funnel so close made it real,” she said.

The same tornado moved north along U.S. Route 27, throwing debris near Clewiston. An 18-wheeler may be responsible for leaving the highway off the Treasure Coast.

Surveillance cameras at Sawgrass Recreation Park in Weston captured the tornado near U.S. Route 27.

A tornado warning was previously issued for Southwest Ranches, Coral Springs and all western Broward County suburbs.

The National Weather Service has confirmed the tornadoes that have formed in West Broward.

As of 4 p.m. Wednesday, no structural damage or injuries had been reported in Broward County.

Over in Miami-Dade County, a huge tree was uprooted by a tornado that ripped through his neighborhood, according to homeowner Mike Slager. He said nothing could ever knock that tree down.

“We could hear what sounded like a train coming down 202,” he said.

Slager said while he was drinking a cup of coffee on his porch, a possible tornado touched down through the southwest Miami-Dade neighborhood.

“And then all hell breaks loose and everything falls apart,” he said. “We both ran into the house and after about 30 seconds it was over.”

When Slager and others came outside, they saw the destruction that was left behind.

“I noticed that the trees were down, the roofs of the boats were dented there and there were things all over the vehicles,” he said.

Near the corner of 320th Street and 200th Court, debris was everywhere, fences were torn down and the huge tree was completely uprooted.

Further up the road, a golf cart became caught in a fallen tree.

“Well, I heard a bang and the wind was blowing through and I went outside and our half of the tree was gone,” said resident Verra Raulerson.

Other neighbors said they received a tornado warning after the possible tornado moved through their neighborhood.

“It came through before we got the alert on our phones, probably 10 minutes,” she said.

It was a scary moment, but neighbors said they were glad no one was hurt.

“I just laid down on the floor because I couldn't fit under my bed and it was obvious something bad was happening,” Eric Herstedt said.

“We’re fine, so that’s the main thing,” Slager said. “A lot less than what they’re going to get up north, so I’m praying for them.”

Emergency crews cleaned up fallen trees around Brenda Newton's farm at Southwest 134th Street and 202nd Avenue in southwest Miami-Dade.

“Just happy to be alive,” she said.

Newton said a tornado early Wednesday morning was responsible for the damage to her and her neighbor's property.

“I heard the wind and the debris hitting the glass and then my dogs got really nervous. I can tell and feel like I can actually hear the wind,” Newton said. “I just grabbed the dogs, ran out of the bedroom, just stood in the hallway and thought, 'Oh my God, oh my God.'”

Within seconds, the force of the potential tornado ripped through their farm, snapping tree branches in half, lifting the roof of their farm and uprooting trees.

“Luckily the tree missed my truck. I usually park it over there,” she said, pointing to the fallen tree.

Mother Nature even injured some of Newton's neighbors' goats.

“Look at our front fence; It twisted it and ripped it off where it was attached,” she said.

As of Wednesday evening, the NWS has not confirmed whether or not a tornado actually touched down in Miami-Dade County.

A tornado warning was in effect for Central Florida, including South Florida and the Florida Keys, until 9 p.m. Wednesday.

Heading up from South Florida, tornadoes struck in places like Port St. Lucie and Stuart, Florida.

Cell phone video showed a driver actually driving through what appeared to be a tornado in its early stages and touching down on a road.

Additional cell phone video from the Marion County Sheriff's Office showed the damage left by the same tornado after it ripped through a nearby mobile home park.

A St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office deputy shared a video posted to social media that described a tornado that brought down a nearby building.

An 18-wheeler was flipped onto its side on the highway near the Indian River on Wednesday afternoon.

Cellphone video captured apparent tornado damage at the Avenir Development in Palm Beach Gardens, including an overturned SUV.

As of 7 p.m. Wednesday, the turnpike remained closed while crews worked to clear the area.

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