Tornado pics/video from Punta Gorda Florida

[Bill Hark]

http://www.abc-7.com/articles/readnews.asp...eid=3849&z=2&p=

http://www.nbc-2.com/articles/readarticle....eid=3849&z=3&p=

Great pictures and video of a waterspout that became a tornado on July 15, 2005 in Punta Gorda. It is always nice top see tornado video, especially outside of the usual areas and after the main season. The NBC link requires one to click on the small "screen." The ABC video should start immediately.

I think some of this video was also shown on CNN.

Bill Hark
http://www.harkphoto.com

 

[Saul Trabal]

Some nice images here as well. Courtesy of Weather Underground.

 

[Bill Hark]

Here is a whole slide show of the tornado from different angles. Images submitted by the general public.
http://www.nbc-2.com/articles/readarticle....eid=3851&z=3&p=

Bill Hark

 

[Bob Schafer]

Wow.

Now try to find someone who lives around there who DIDN'T get pics of that tornado! LOL

Bob

 

[joel ewing]

Wow! Nice pics / video of that Floria naderspout. I hope somebody got the entire lifespan of that one. It looked very chaser friendly and photogenic. Kind of reminds me of that gorgeous footage of another naderspout in the Miami area a few years back that some guy with a videocam got...and was all over the news.
Thanks to all that submitted! Joel

 

[Joe Guerra]

Wow, those are really nice pics, seems alot of people got footage of that one!

 

[Eric Friedebach]

A news item from that day:

Waterspout makes FEMA park residents fearful

Bob Reddy, Sun-Herald.com, 7-19-05

PUNTA GORDA -- As thousands of area residents watched in awe Friday evening as a waterspout twisted its way along the shoreline, some were panicked by the force of nature.

The slow-moving twister, which touched land between the U.S. 41 bridges and at Gilchrist Park, allowed hundreds of people to take pictures or shoot video.

What they should have been doing was seeking shelter in a safe part of their homes.

The reaction by the 1,200 hurricane victims living at the Federal Emergency Management Agency mobile home park on Airport Road was a microcosm of the overall community reaction -- some curiosity, some panic and even a little bit of anger.

The anger came from some FEMA park residents who had no idea where to go or what to do when it appeared as if the twister was coming toward them.

\"I was scared to death,\" Beth Lively said Monday. \"I've seen these things before, and I know what they do to mobile homes. We had nowhere to go.\"

More than 500 mobile homes are packed tightly into the park. Some of the residents are from the Midwest, where tornadoes are a deadly spring and summer threat, similar to the type of yearly threat hurricanes pose for Florida.

Shirley Meggs said she tried to run away from the storm, but with a bad back and bad knees, she didn't know what to do.

\"I threw the cats in the (carrier) bag and tried to get out of here with everyone,\" Meggs said. \"I ran to hide behind some (cement barricades), because there is no where else to go.\"

Some were posing in front in the tornado and taking pictures while others scrambled to find cover.

More:
http://www.sun-herald.com/NewsArchive2/071...tory=tp2ch8.htm