SWFL braces for possible third round of severe weather

CAPE CORAL, Fla. – Rick Koch knows the drill by now.

After his home was damaged by an EF2 tornado on Jan. 9, followed by more severe storms on Friday, including an EF1 tornado in Fort Myers, Koch has his plan in place.

“I know my phone will be right beside my bed, and as soon as that alarm goes off, or if it does go off, into the laundry room, on the floor,” he said. “You just have to take precautionary measures, you just don’t know. It shouldn’t hit again but what if it does? You never know.”

Heavy rain could reach Charlotte County after 4 a.m. Sunday, Lee County between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m., and Collier County by 7 a.m., WINK News meteorologist Eric Stone said. The region could experience 1-3 inches of rain on Sunday, Stone said.

Southwest Florida is under a wind advisory until 7 p.m. Sunday as wind gusts could reach over 40 mph, Stone said.

“Even in the afternoon, we can expect wind gusts between 30 and 40 miles per hour, maybe even upwards of 45,” he said.

More than 200 homes were damaged after the first tornado, with an estimated peak wind of 132 mph, struck southwest Cape Coral. The second tornado, with an estimated peak wind of 100 mph, damaged the roof of a condo on Feather Sound Drive in Fort Myers. Three other buildings were damaged by Friday’s tornado, the National Weather Service said.

Friday’s rainfall, which surpassed four inches in some areas, made for a muddy Saturday at the Kiwanis Medieval Fair at Lakes Regional Park.

“The field last night was five inches of water, canals and ponds were overflowing,” said Terry Short, fair chairman. “We went out this morning, started about 6 o’clock and started draining and pumping and doing whatever we could to bring the water level down.”

Despite the mud, patrons made the best out of a damp situation.

“This is the 12th century, we don’t have any electricity to start with so nobody cared,” Short said. “Our patrons are really a lot of fun. Walking in muck up to their knees, that’s just the way life is.”