Does Central Florida Get Tornadoes?

Yes Central Florida does get tornadoes. Quite a few significant tornadoes occur between Fort Myers and Tampa Bay. That area is known as the Tornado Alley of Florida. Most occur in the spring and summer months with the stronger ones usually showing up in the spring.

Central Florida

Severe Thunderstorm & Tornado Damage Vs Lightning Damage

Just recently the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning and as expected a tornado struck the Tampa area. I even remember as a child watching as a tornado passed within a mile of my dad and I.

Normally though, in Central Florida you will have power lines blown down or damages and no large trees snapped. We keep our trees pruned which helps significantly as the wind blows through them easier. We loose more trees, and power lines (loose power) because of lightning than any other event.

Florida's Southeast Corner Of Central Florida & Mobile Homes

Orange county seldom has tornadoes. I cant remember the last time a tornado touched down there. Most of the risk historically has been along the southeast part of Florida. A tornado watch is fairly common there and so are waterspouts which are thankfully much weaker.

I would probably not want to live in a mobile home park anywhere in Florida because, strong storms are fairly common. That being said I can think of a mobile home community in South Tampa that has been there since the 1960's.

Hurricane Season & Wind Speeds

That incredible gulf breeze or the pleasant sea breeze you will feel along the Atlantic Coast is somewhat deceptive. Often as a boater I would leave the inlet on my way out on a beautiful morning and return with a squall line ahead between me and the shore.

Unless you have lived through rough water and a hurricane you just don't understand that it is like a continuous thunderstorm for 2 days. You will often see roofs torn off, moving autos pushed and significant damage to most trees. When the wind reaches 120 mph it even blows off all of the leaves.

On the brighter side of things I would like to share the following. Most new homes built as of 2003 in Central Florida have concrete walls and low profile roofs. They are built to survive high winds and they are going to have lower utility bills as well. Florida is worth the risk, you will know days in advance when a hurricane is headed our way.