Pensacola area saw three confirmed tornadoes in last week's severe weather outbreak
The Pensacola area had three tornadoes touch down in last week's severe weather outbreak, the National Weather Service confirmed.
The weather service updated its local storm report for the severe weather outbreak from March 30-31 over the weekend.
The new preliminary report based on on-the-ground survey reports from weather service officials includes details on three confirmed tornadoes that touched down in Northwest Florida.
All three tornadoes in the Pensacola area, occurred after midnight March 31 and were classified as "weak" tornadoes of EF0, with winds between 65 mph and 85 mph, and EF1, with winds of 86 mph to 110 mph.
Gonzalez and Pace both had tornadoes touch down
The first tornado touched down at 12:25 a.m. in the Gonzalez area of Escambia County near Chemstrand Road and traveled northeast crossing Caterpillar Lane and ending at Crystal Drive at 12:26 a.m.
The tornado only stayed on the ground for about a third of a mile and had peak winds of 80 mph, giving it a classification of EF0.
The weather service said the tornado caused minor damage to fencing, roofs and siding on homes, as well as snapping and uprooting some trees in the area.
More weather to come: High winds, thunderstorms, potential tornadoes expected to strike Pensacola area
The second tornado touched down in Santa Rosa County in Pace in the Autumn Run subdivision at 12:32 a.m.
It was classified as an EF1 with peak winds of 94 mph, the weather wervice said.
The tornado stayed on the ground for 0.39 miles, beginning on Dove Drive and moving north-northeast crossing Quintette Road and lifting off near the intersection of Berryhill Road and Chumuckla Highway.
The weather service said the tornado caused damage to multiple homes that included "notable loss of roofing material" along with uprooted trees.
Third tornado touched down in Escambia Bay
The third tornado was the strongest and longest-lived of the night to touchdown near Pensacola.
It touched down in Escambia Bay at 12:37 a.m. near the Interstate 10 bridge and stayed on the ground for 5.96 miles as it moved onshore into the Avalon community.
The tornado reached peak winds of 104 mph, giving it an EF1 classification.
The weather service said the tornado is what caused a semi-truck carrying 10,000 pounds of electronics to overturn on the I-10 bridge. The driver and passenger were transported to the hospital to be evaluated for injuries.
As it moved onshore near North Sixth Avenue, the tornado caused minor tree damage before turning northeast and picking up intensity.
The weather service said the tornado caused minor to moderate roof damage to homes in the area.
As it moved northeast near De La Rue Drive, the tornado reached its peak windspeed, causing several trees in the area to snap. The tornado continued to move into The Moors subdivision, causing damage to trees and roof damage to homes along Highland Lake Drive and Edinburgh Castle Drive.
One home on Edinburgh Castle Drive had a personal weather station and took a direct impact from the tornado. The weather service said the homeowner's weather station recorded a wind gust of 97 mph when the tornado hit.
The home had "notable roof damage along with many of its windows blown out," the weather service said.
The tornado continued northeast crossing Avalon Boulevard, causing damage to a commercial building before moving into a largely unoccupied wooded area where it finally ended at 12:47 a.m.
EF3 tornado touched down in Washington and Jackson counties
The strongest tornado of the night occurred to the east, where an EF3 tornado was confirmed to have touched down in Washington and Jackson counties.
That tornado had peak winds of 150 mph as it moved along a 12.15-mile long area in the Alford community. Two people were killed and two others injured in the storm.
Nationwide, the severe weather outbreak on March 30 and March 31 saw 89 reports of tornadoes in several states from Illinois to Florida, according to the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center.
Jim Little can be reached at jwlittle@pnj.com and 850-208-9827.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola area tornadoes: 3 confirmed tornadoes touch down March 31
