At least four people were killed Wednesday after multiple tornadoes from Hurricane Milton touched down in a senior living community in St. Lucie County, Florida, the St. Lucie County Emergency Operations Center confirmed to FOX Weather.
St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson said search and rescue crews were out searching for victims at Spanish Lakes Country Club in Fort Pierce, where a massive tornado struck the area.
“They didn't stand a chance,” Pearson said. “Everything in (the tornado's) path is devastated. As the storm approaches Milton, our deputies are on the scene with the National Guard and search and rescue teams are working their way through the debris. ”
Hurricane Milton makes landfall in Florida with damaging winds and devastating storm surge
Twisted metal falls from a St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office building onto a police vehicle. (ERIC HASERT/TCPALM/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
The sheriff reported that hundreds of homes were damaged or destroyed in the county. The exact number of people trapped and in need of rescue is unknown.
“We have about 300 law enforcement and volunteers searching these homes for rescue efforts and seeing if we can get anyone else out,” Pearson told FOX Weather. Ta.
The sheriff's office building was also damaged.
Pearson's video, shot outside the headquarters, showed a 10,000-square-foot building destroyed by the tornado and several police cars trapped under twisted metal. Pearson said no one was inside and no one was injured.
Video: Sheriff describes catastrophic tornado damage to St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office building
Tropicana field roof torn apart by Hurricane Milton
St. Lucie County spokesman Eric Gill told Fox & Friends on Thursday that a tornado formed before Milton made landfall in the county.
Gill said two tornadoes were confirmed in the area, and there could have been as many as 12 total tornadoes that hit St. Lucie. He said the county's emergency operations center received more than 900 calls regarding tornado activity.
He said the county has not issued any emergency evacuation orders because the area is expected to be hit by a hurricane and even normal storms can produce tornadoes.
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St. Lucie County Sheriff Keith Pearson describes the damage to the police building caused by the tornado. (St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office)
“All the forecasts came in yesterday…we didn't expect the tornado activity that we saw yesterday,” Gill said. “I've worked in St. Lucie County for 21 years and have been through many storms here, but this was the worst I've ever seen.”
He urged residents to stay home and let first responders do their jobs.
More than 3 million people were without power in Florida on Thursday. Hurricane Milton makes landfall A damaging Category 3 storm developed near Siesta Key last night.
Milton, a Category 1 storm at the time of this report, is currently moving off the east coast of Florida after bringing harmful winds, flooding, and the ongoing threat of storm surge to the region.
On Wednesday, multiple tornadoes spawned by Hurricane Milton touched down at the Spanish Lakes Country Club in Fort Pierce, a senior living community, killing at least four people. (Google Maps)
