FORT PIERCE, Fla. – Hours before making landfall, Hurricane Milton spawned a tornado outbreak along Florida’s East Coast.
Suspected tornados ripped through Palm Beach and Martin counties.
Videos show the massive funnel clouds appearing to touch ground as cars on the highway attempted to outrun the storm.
In Saint Lucie County, in northern Fort Pierce, multiple suspected tornados led to several deaths, Sheriff Keith Pearson shared Wednesday evening.
“We have lost some life -- search and rescue teams are on their way, our deputies are out here, the fire district is out here, we’re going through the rubble and trying to recover anybody we can and provide whatever help that we can,” Pearson said.
The deaths occurred in the Spanish Lakes Country Club in the Spanish Lakes Community, Pearson said.
On the ground in Wellington, the damage left behind was already visible Wednesday night.
A car was tossed into a tree in one residential area.
A man who lives in the neighborhood showed Local 10 News some of the damage. There was siding ripped off homes, trees were snapped in half, windows were smashed in and tree branches were left inside a home.
Pauline Cornish was inside her house as the storm passed.
“I go back to saying I’m alive, so I’m thankful,” she said.
While there were several injuries reported in Wellington, officials said there have been no reports of death.