According to authorities, multiple structures were destroyed after a tornado hit the west side of Crystal River in Citrus County, Florida. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported. The Citrus County Sheriff’s Office has stated that residents were not informed of any tornado watch or warning, as the size of the tornado was too small to be detected by the National Weather Service’s radar.
Residents in Crystal River, Florida were taken aback on Sunday when an unanticipated tornado struck an area known as the “dead zone,” causing significant damage in its wake. Despite going undetected, the tornado left a path of destruction in its wake.
Thankfully, there were no injuries reported as a twister tore through the west side of Crystal River, according to authorities.
According to the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office, no alerts were issued to residents for a tornado watch or warning. This was because the tornado was deemed too small to be detected by the National Weather Service’s radar.
According to the FOX 35 Storm Team, the low level rotation required to issue a warning for the tornado was possibly undetectable as it was too far away from any radar site.
According to meteorologist Brooks Garner, the tornado resembled a waterspout as it began over the Crystal River and made its way towards the inland.
Garner explained that the rotation was completely missed as the rain was visible, but not the rotation. This is how it was overlooked.
The acknowledgement of a ‘tornado dead zone’ has been made in a report by NOAA.
According to reports, the tornado that hit Florida occurred in an area without a radar site to detect rotation. Despite having multiple radar sites in Tallahassee, Ruskin, and Jacksonville, the tornado hit a so-called “dead zone”.
Around 700,000 individuals reside within that particular area.
Garner believes that having a radar site, possibly in Dunnellon or westernmost Marion County, would be highly advantageous. “That would help a lot for sure,” he stated.
