Sensational footage showed a tornado slamming into a Fox television studio in Florida, which led to the weatherman ordering his colleagues to get under their desks live on air.
Brooks Garner, a meteorologist for FOX 35 in Lake Mary, north of Orlando, was stunningly able to keep his cool as an EF-2 tornado hit the studio on Monday morning.
Tornadoes of this magnitude are capable of generating winds of 111 to 135 miles per hour, which are speeds that could easily rip an entire roof of a home.
Garner spotted the massive twister on the studio’s outdoor camera, which showed it marching across Interstate-4 and toward the journalists inside the FOX 35 building.
Once the winds and the torrential downpour made it impossible to see anything but the debris getting thrown around, Garner said it was time for everyone to ‘take shelter.’
‘We got debris? Okay. Take shelter! Everybody in the FOX 35 building, get to your safe space. Under your desk if you’re not in a designated area. We’re catching debris right now on the roof,’ he said.
While debris could be heard hitting the building, Garner reiterated his demand for people to seek shelter a little more forcefully.
‘Seek shelter immediately! Get under your desks, guys, anchors. Under the desks. Producers, everybody get under the desks.’
Brooks Garner, FOX 35 meteorologist, was in the middle of a live broadcast on Monday when a tornado slammed into the TV studio he was in
Pictured: The moments before the EF-2 tornado makes impact with the FOX 35 building in Lake Mary, Florida
As the tornado passed the station, Garner refocused his attention on anyone in the path that might have been listening to the broadcast.
‘Get to the ground level, an interior room, away from the windows,’ he told viewers. ‘This is a very serious situation. This is a real, live tornado. It just hit our station.’
According to the National Weather Service, the tornado formed at 9:35am at the southeastern edge of Wekiwa Springs State Park.
The twister, which at its peak had winds of 120 miles per hour, tore through residential areas in Longwood and caused significant damage to people’s windows and roofs.
At least one home collapsed, according to the NWS. Not only that, a semi-truck was flipped over with its driver and his dog inside, officials told FOX 35.
There were numerous reports of downed trees and power lines. Even the TV studio had lights flickering inside their well-fortified building.
The tornado gradually made its way northeast toward the studio. After colliding with the building, it dissipated at 9:41am.
That means the tornado, which covered 4 miles and was 300 yards wide at most, lasted for six minutes.
There were no reported serious injuries or deaths, according to the NWS.
Pictured: Extensive damage to trees and powerlines was seen in Longwood
Pictured: A home in Longwood was completely collapsed after the extreme weather event
Jeanicmar Rangel posted a video of herself stuck in her work van as the tornado passed right over her.
‘Aye Dios mio!’ Rangel could be heard crying in the video.
The video showed debris hammering her windshield as the vehicle rocked back and forth.
Rangel said the ordeal lasted for about 40 seconds but said part of her was convinced those would be her last 40 seconds.
‘I got under the co-pilot area, because obviously the van doesn’t have a door to the back – only the side door,’ Rangel told FOX 35. ‘I told myself to keep recording until the wind stopped because the van was shaking me.’
NWS meteorologist Will Ulrich said tornadoes of this strength are rare in Florida, with only 10 percent of tornadoes in Central Florida ever reaching EF-1 or EF-2 status.
Tornadoes are especially rare this time of year, as peak storm season in the southern state comes in the late summer and early fall.
