Power Outage in Lakeland, FL

Public reported power pole snapped near Kathleen.

Amateur radio reported damage to roof and shed along with a few powerlines down in the area.

Multiple trees and power lines were reported down in southern Lakeland.

An NWS storm survey crew found 7 wood power poles snapped halfway up along Old Polk City Road, hinting at a strong rotation just aloft of the surface. Winds were estimated at 115 MPH/EF-2. Timing of the tornado touchdown was estimated from radar.

In Polk County, the highest wind reported from Hurricane Irma was a gust to 75 knots at the APRS station AR663 near Bartow. Rainfall was generally around 6 inches or greater, with the highest rain total being 17.61 inches at the CWOP station E1114 in Davenport. The wind resulted in damage to numerous homes and businesses, as well as knocking over trees and power lines. Most notably, the wind removed a 7 story tall section of facade from the Winter Haven Senior Living Center. Polk County Emergency Management reported that 96 homes or businesses were destroyed by Irma, 1604 sustained major damage, 7710 had minor damage, and an additional 18537 were affected.||The total property damage from Polk County was estimated at $69 million in public assistance claims, including from debris removal and emergency protective measures, most of which coming from wind damage. Additionally, crop damage to citrus plants in Polk County was roughly estimated at $93.5 million.||One tornado was found to have touched down near Old Polk City Road near Lakeland, causing EF2 damage.||Three indirect fatalities were reported in Polk County from Irma. A 7 year old girl died from carbon monoxide poisoning on the 13th in Lakeland due to a gas generator being run indoors. A 63 year old man died in Winterhaven on the 13th while conducting post hurricane work on his home. The medical examiner listed the primary cause of death as heart disease. A 77 year old died in Lakeland on the 17th after he fell at an Assisted Living Facility.

Polk County Fire Rescue reported that multiple 911 calls were received of a tornado briefly touching down in the Lake Wales area. A few trees were found knocked over and two power poles were partial damaged, but no structural damage was reported.

Polk County Fire Rescue reported that multiple 911 calls were received of a tornado briefly touching down in the Lake Wales area. A few trees were found knocked over and two power poles were partial damaged, but no structural damage was reported.

Polk County Emergency Management reported that a few power poles were snapped near the intersection of Old Highway 37 and Pebbledale Road. Time was estimated by radar.

The Imperial Polk County Emergency Management Department reported 14 power poles blown down along with the power lines near Poinciana Parkway. Additionally, fence damage was reported in Tuscany Preserve.

A trained spotter reported minor damage as a tornado briefly touched down near the intersection of Thompson Nursery Road and State Road 653. A semi was overturned in a ditch with trees and power lines downed.

Emergency Management reported a narrow path of damage that included damage to at least 17 homes. A big box store lost part of the roof. Power lines were downed and blocking a road. Multiple mobile homes sustained roof damage.

Amateur radio operators reported a tornado on the ground north of Mulberry, and numerous trees and powerlines were downed north of Bartow. No damage was reported to structures as the tornado moved through a rural area north of the cities.

Amateur radio operators reported a tornado on the ground north of Mulberry, and numerous trees and powerlines were downed north of Bartow. No damage was reported to structures as the tornado moved through a rural area north of the cities.

Straight-line winds estimated at 50 MPH at a RV dealership damaged 26 RV trailers and totaled 16 RV trailers. The trailers and campers were not tied down or secured, and most of the damage was from one trailer tipping over onto another and trailers getting pushed into each other. There was no other damage at the dealership to trees, powerlines, or fencing, and the damage path was all in one direction.

Numerous oak and orange trees uprooted, widespread limbs down, and power lines down.

A Lakeland utility company reported that thunderstorm winds downed several large branches and power lines throughout Lakeland, Florida.

Thunderstorm winds removed the tin roof of a home, damaged several sheds, downed a few large trees, numerous branches and power lines along Lake Buffum Road South in rural south central Polk county.

The public reported, through a Peace River Electric Co-op representative, that thunderstorm winds downed trees, power lines and overturned sheds from West Frostproof to Lake Buffum.

Hurricane Jeanne followed the nearly the same path across Florida as Hurricane Frances three weeks earlier and was the unprecedented fourth hurricane to damage Florida during the 2004 hurricane season. The hurricane moved ashore along the east coast of Florida near Stuart late on September 25th with an eye 30 to 40 miles across. Jeanne took a course north of Lake Okeechobee and decreased to a tropical storm in eastern Polk County around 9 AM EDT on the 26th. The center of Jeanne curved north of Tampa Bay during the afternoon and travelled north along the coastal counties before exiting north through Levy County around 10 PM. In Highlands County there were 140 homes destroyed and 2,000 homes with major damage. Emergency Management estimated the total damage to be $452 million. A peak wind of 82 knots (94 MPH) was recorded in Sebring at 3 AM EST on 09/26/2004. In Polk County a peak wind gust of 67 knots (77 MPH) was recorded in both Frostproof and Bartow between 5-6 AM EST on 09/26/2004. In Hardee and Sumter Counties the damage was limited to trees falling on homes, vehicles, and power lines. The damage total was estimated by doubling the insured losses unless otherwise noted. The doubling accounted for uninsured losses and damge to the public infrastructure. Flood damage was included within these totals because it was not possible to extract the flood damage information from the available data.

The collective effects of Hurricane Charley in southwest and west central Florida during August 13th resulted in 8 direct fatalities, 16 indirect fatalities, 792 injuries, eight tornadoes, an eight foot storm surge in Lee County, an estimated $11.2 billion in property damage (estimated to be about twice that of the insured damage), and $460 million in crop damage. The fast movement of Hurricane Charley limited rain fall totals to 4 to 6 inches along the track of the hurricane's eye wall. River flooding of one to three feet above flood stage was found on area rivers south of Interstate 4. In Hardee County there were 6 injuries, zero fatalities, and damage was estimated at $750 million. A wind gust of 109 mph was recorded in Wauchula. Approximately 1,400 homes were destroyed and 3,600 homes had minor to major damage. The storm knocked out the power to the entire county. Many citrus groves north of Wauchula were severely damaged. In Highlands County there were reports of severely damaged homes in the Sebring and Avon Park areas. A radio tower was blown down near Sebring and numerous trees and power lines were downed in the eastern and northern parts of the county. In Polk County there was one direct fatality and six indirect fatalities. There were six injuries, mostly due to carbon monoxide poisoning from backup generators used after the storm. Half of the county lost power. A 50 foot deep sink hole opened up and swallowed a car on State Road 60 east of Bartow. A wind gust of 64 mph was recorded at the airport in Winter Haven before the instrument stopped working due to a power outage and before the hurricane arrived. A peak gust of 69 knots (79 mph) was recorded in Haines City. The Bartow and Lake Wales area were hit the hardest. In all, 22,994 structures were damaged and 739 were destroyed. Citrus groves around and south of Lake Wales were severely damaged. The damage total listed was estimated by doubling the insured losses. The doubling accounted for uninsured losses and damage to the public infrastructure. Flood damage was included within these totals because it was not possible to extract the flood damage information from the available data.

A cluster of strong to severe thunderstorms developed over interior west central Florida shortly after sunset, producing marginally large hail, locally heavy rainfall, and lightning strikes. In Polk County, separate storms produced three quarter inch diameter hail near Lakeland and Bartow. Lightning associated with the storm near Lakeland struck a home, causing damage to the roof and insulation. Other strikes started minor brush fires and caused scattered power outages. A funnel cloud was reported with the Bartow storm.About an hour later, another storm produced three quarter inch hail in Hardee Co. near Bowling Green.