At least 14 dead as storms rage through Florida

AT least 14 people were killed yesterday as thunderstorms and at least one tornado struck central Florida, flattening homes and a church, causing power outages and lifting an articulated truck into the air.

Lake County spokesman Christopher Patton confirmed the 14 deaths but no further details were available. Dozens of mobile homes near Lady Lake were destroyed by the storms that hit in the middle of the night.

Some homes were tossed from their foundations, while others had their roofs ripped off.

“The most dangerous tornado scenario is a threat of killer tornadoes at night, and that was the case,” said Dave Sharp, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Melbourne.

The Lady Lake Church of God was demolished, its pews, altar and Bibles left in a jumbled mess. The 31-year-old, steel-reinforced structure was built to withstand 150-mph winds, the Rev Larry Lynn said.

By daybreak, parishioners gathered amid the ruins, hugging each other and consoling Rev Lynn. They planned to clear the debris and hold Sunday services on the empty lot.

The storms moved across Sumter and Lake counties around 3.15am, then moved to Volusia County, where 69 homes and a county medical clinic were damaged.

About 20,000 customers were without power across a wide swathe of central Florida, Progress Energy spokeswoman Cherie Jacobs said.

Florida Power & Light reported about 200 customers without power in the DeLand area.

The state’s emergency operations centre was activated, said Mike Stone, spokesman at the state’s Department of Emergency Management.