Panama City, FL (AP) – Severe weather pummeled Florida’s Panhandle Tuesday morning leaving a path of destruction.
Storm-related injuries were reported, but no deaths.
Severe weather caused significant damage in Panama City Beach – parts of roofs blown away, furniture, fences and debris strewn about and a house that appeared tilted on side, leaning on another home.
Police asked residents to stay indoors and off the roads “unless absolutely necessary” as officers checked on damage from the storms, including downed power lines and trees.
The city is in Bay County, where there had been multiple reports of tornadoes on the ground, Sheriff Tommy Ford said in a brief Facebook Live post.
“We’ve rescued people out of structures,” he said.
The department urged people to stay home, posting photos of a damaged apartment complex and marina.
The Walton County sheriff’s department in the Florida Panhandle posted photos of power lines draped across a road, damage to a gas station and large pieces of building materials littering the area. About 70 miles northeast in Jackson County, photos show damage to a campground and RV park in Marianna.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, who gave his State of the State address Tuesday as tornado warnings were active outside the Capitol, issued an executive order placing 49 counties in north Florida under a state of emergency.
“Every government building except this one is closed in Tallahassee because of the weather,” DeSantis said at the start of the speech. “We just do what we do in Florida: We respond when these things happen… We’ll handle whatever fallout is from these dangerous tornadoes.”