TAMPA, Fla. — Neighbors in Ybor City are left picking up the pieces after strong storms Wednesday evening knocked over trees, tore apart roofs and damaged homes.
Frederick Copeland, who has lived in the area since 1984, described the storm that passed through.
“Between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. yesterday, a storm came through, did a lot of damage, knocked over, split a tree," Copeland said. "I guess lightning hit it, and it tore my fence down and my neighbor's fence, and we’re back here cleaning it up now. It was very terrifying because it was unpredictable."
The National Weather Service of Tampa Bay said a brief microburst happened in this area around 5 p.m. Wednesday.
Did you happen to be in Ybor City around 5PM? Did you notice it got really windy for a few moments? A brief microburst occurred in this area, indicated by the rushing winds shown over the area. What is a microburst? 👉 https://t.co/QpHlT5DMAU
— NWS Tampa Bay (@NWSTampaBay) August 24, 2022
Any pics or videos? Tag us! #flwx pic.twitter.com/37TvAjcmfL
Some neighbors said they’d never seen or experienced anything like it. Charles Carpenter gave ABC Action News a walk-through of all the damage to his home.
He said the wind suddenly picked up and everything was flying sideways out the window.
Carpenter said he didn’t know the roof was gone until buckets of water started pouring in. He said he even tried to use pots and pans to help catch all the water coming down in his home.
“You think it’s Ybor City, it’s kind of like a city, a little bit more protected," Carpenter said. "No, it was unbelievable, very terrifying."
Crews had been working all afternoon Thursday to help repair homes and move debris.
Michael Manos is with AM Roofing and Waterproofing. He was out in the area working on some of the damaged homes.
Manos pointed out that these storms can happen fast, but only a few seconds can do a tremendous amount of damage.
"I’ve seen some of these roofs last for 60, 70 plus years with all the storms and everything else, but there are certain times when you get the right kind of wind in the right direction in the right way, and it just will take everything off," Manos said.
Manos said his best recommendation is for people to have their roofs inspected at least once every couple of years.
