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Experts Rate Pasco Tornado

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By NEIL JOHNSON and LISA A. DAVIS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 18, 2007

Updated: 12/17/2007 11:23 pm

TAMPA - The National Weather Service said the tornado that wrecked a Pasco County jail annex Sunday morning stayed on the ground for seven minutes and had winds of 100 mph.

The tornado was on the ground from 5:20 to 5:27 a.m. and touched down in Land O' Lakes, right at the jail entrance on Central Boulevard. It cut a 3.1-mile path 100 yards wide.

The storm system that spawned the tornado heralded a blast of cold weather that left Florida shivering Monday morning.

Expect more of the same this morning, the National Weather Service said. For Hernando County north, a freeze warning is in place until 9 a.m. today, with temperatures expected to drop to freezing or below for several hours.

The high today will be about 68 degrees, but without Monday's wind it may not feel as cold. The wind in Tampa was blowing from the north about 14 mph Monday, with gusts up to 20 mph, making temperatures in the 30s feel even colder.

Monday was the first time temperatures in Tampa have fallen that low since Feb. 17.

The tornado traveled northeast toward State Road 52. Its track ended about three miles east of U.S. 41 and S.R. 52.

The weather service determined the size of the tornado by surveying damage that included three overturned vehicles and 7,000-pound air conditioning units dislodged and tossed up to 20 feet.

The weather service estimated damage at $500,000, but also said the amount likely would increase as Pasco County officials develop a more accurate tally.

Cleanup continued Monday at the jail complex, where the annex housing unit was destroyed, another unit was damaged and roof damage was reported at the main jail.

Moments before the twister roared through the jail complex, 184 inmates fled two domed structures.

Sheriff Bob White said Monday that 85 women housed in the aluminum- and plastic-coated canvas structure that was damaged were moved to Hernando County. Marion County accepted 50 men, and 49 inmates housed in the damaged or destroyed minimum-security buildings remained in Land O' Lakes.

As many as 25 more inmates could be moved, White said. Jails from as far away as Georgia have offered to house Pasco inmates. With the two structures lost, the Pasco jail's bed capacity is 793. As of Monday morning, the jail had 1,113 inmates, White said.

The tornado came from a supercell storm that moved ashore about 4:40 a.m.

The same supercell produced a wind gust of 78 mph at Clearwater Beach.

Reporter Lisa A. Davis can be reached at (727) 815-1083 or ldavis@tampatrib.com. Reporter Neil Johnson can be reached at (813) 259-7731 or njohnson@tampatrib .com.

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