Storms spawn pair of tornadoes

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. A pair of tornadoes ripped through Charlotte County on Monday night.

One touched down along Aspen Road east of Punta Gorda. Another struck on Manasota Key near DeSoto Avenue and North Beach Road, according to the National Weather Service.

Both were classified as EF-1 tornadoes by the weather service. The Manasota Key tornado had estimated peak winds of 105 mph, while the Aspen Road tornado’s winds reached an estimated 100 mph.

Doppler Radar data suggests they might have been the same tornado, Chief Meteorologist Jim Farrell said, but the weather service hasn’t confirmed that.

A weather service storm survey crew found a short and narrow path of damage just east of Aspen Road and south of Palm Shores Boulevard. The tornado that passed through there damaged nine homes, Charlotte County officials said. It also downed several trees, flipped over a pickup truck and blew a trailer into a tree, according to the weather service.

The Manasota Key tornado began as a water spout before moving onshore, the weather service said. Multiple residences sustained roof damage, a weather service storm survey team found, and a few trees were uprooted. Dozens were still without power as of 6 p.m. Tuesday.

Four condominiums and a house on Manasota Key were damaged so badly that they were deemed unsafe to live in Tuesday.

A tornado warning was issued Monday night for parts of Sarasota County, but no warning was in place for Manasota Key or Aspen Road. Still, no one in Charlotte County was severely hurt.

WINK News reporter Britni McDonald went live via Facebook from the scene of damage near Aspen Road: