ORLANDO, Fla. — The National Weather Service has issued a tornado watch for parts of Florida as Hurricane Milton approaches the state.

The watch issued before 8:30 a.m. Eastern time runs until 9 p.m. and for now includes Brevard, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole and Volusia counties.

Between 4 a.m. and 2 p.m., the NWS has issued more than 50 tornado warnings with more expected.

Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno posted damage from a suspected tornado in Matlacha on the Gulf Coast with power lines leaning to one side.

Video posted on X showed some of the major damage in Fort Myers with multiple roofs gone.

Images captured by Florida Department of Transportation cameras on Interstate 75 showed a funnel cloud crossing in the Everglades around 10 a.m.

More tornadoes were seen across the state Wednesday morning, including a large funnel cloud near Clewiston.

The NWS warned several tornadoes are likely with the added threats of winds in excess of 70 mph and possible hail as a mass of thunderstorms has already begun to move across the Florida peninsula on Wednesday morning ahead of the hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico.

Tornado warnings have already begun with a dicey weather system ahead of Milton’s main circulation moving up through South Florida, with alerts sent by 1 p.m. for Martin, Okeechobee, St. Lucie counties on the east side of Florida, several in the middle of the state and on the Gulf Coast near Naples, Cape Coral, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda, Sanibel and Fort Myers.

Earlier tornado warnings were alerted near Marco Island, Immokalee and Clewiston as well as areas within Collier, Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Hendry and Palm Beach counties.

The watch area is likely to expand later in the day as the storm gets closer to the state.

Be sure to have weather alerts activated on your phone or keep track of warnings by following the NWS tornado account on X at https://x.com/NWStornado.

______

©2024 Orlando Sentinel. Visit at orlandosentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.