{"id":423333,"date":"2026-10-09T14:26:42","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T14:26:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/423333\/"},"modified":"2026-10-09T14:26:42","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T14:26:42","slug":"hurricane-isaias-could-trigger-tornado-supercells-across-north-florida","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/423333\/","title":{"rendered":"Hurricane Isaias could trigger tornado supercells across North Florida"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the core of Hurricane Isaias<\/a> approaches the Alabama-Florida border, the potential for tornado activity is expected to increase across the eastern Florida Panhandle and portions of North Florida, where atmospheric conditions could support numerous rotating thunderstorms.<\/p>\n

Typically, during a landfalling tropical cyclone, the chance of tornadic activity is elevated, but atmospheric conditions this time around are expected to be even more favorable and could resemble a pattern produced by Hurricane Milton<\/a> in 2024.<\/p>\n

During Milton, National Weather Service<\/a> meteorologists issued 126 tornado warnings across the state and surveyed 45 tornadoes.<\/p>\n

\"ReportedReported tornadoes during Hurricane Milton in 2024. (NOAA)<\/p>\n

The outbreak was the largest in Florida\u2019s history, doubling the previous record held by Tropical Storm Debby, which impacted the state back in June 2012.<\/p>\n

The Milton outbreak was prolific because of strong wind shear, daytime heating and supercells located far away from the center of circulation \u2014 a scenario that could unfold again with Isaias along the Interstate 10 corridor between Pensacola and Jacksonville.<\/p>\n

Forecast models show the greatest threat for tornadoes developing after sunset Friday and lasting through much of Saturday.<\/p>\n

The tornadoes are expected to occur in the classic zone \u2014 the cyclone\u2019s right semicircle.<\/p>\n

\"MapMap showing significant tornado parameters along the I-10 corridor From Friday evening into Saturday. (NOAA)<\/p>\n

According to previous research, upwards of 80% of tornadoes occur in or around the right sector of a hurricane.<\/p>\n

Most tornadoes produced during tropical cyclones are on the weaker end of the Enhanced Fujita Scale, but occasionally, an EF3 tornado can occur, as happened during Milton.<\/p>\n

Hurricane Milton produced three EF3 tornadoes, which contributed to the deaths of at least six people across southern Florida.<\/p>\n

Many of those tornadoes occurred during the day and were not rain-wrapped \u2014 a scenario that may not happen with Isaias.<\/p>\n

Tornadoes associated with Isaias\u2019 band<\/a>s could occur during nighttime hours and be rain-wrapped, adding to the difficulty meteorologists face issuing accurate alerts.<\/p>\n

Complicating matters are the cells\u2019 forward speeds, which can be much faster than that of a typical Florida thunderstorm, meaning there may be little time to prepare for each individual cell.<\/p>\n

Counties stretching from the Alabama-Florida border through the Suwannee Valley to areas near the First Coast will likely be placed under a tornado watch ahead of the inclement weather.<\/p>\n

A tornado watch means weather conditions are favorable for tornadoes to develop and is usually issued hours before the commencement of a severe weather event.<\/p>\n

If a tornado is spotted or detected by Doppler radar, National Weather Service meteorologists issue a tornado warning.<\/p>\n

At the warning point, you should seek immediate shelter in an interior room on the lowest floor and stay away from windows.<\/p>\n

Because tornadoes can develop frequently during tropical systems, there may be little time to protect yourself once a warning is in effect.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In rare occasions, a tornado emergency can be issued, which is the agency\u2019s most critical level of alert.<\/p>\n

The alert is issued only when a confirmed, violent tornado is moving through a populated area and significant damage is occurring.<\/p>\n

Since the implementation of the tornado emergency alert system in 1999, none of the more than 200 emergencies have occurred in Florida.<\/p>\n

Residents near and east of Isaias\u2019 path across Florida and the Southeast should remain alert and be prepared to take immediate action in the event of a tornado over the next 72 hours.<\/p>\n

Very few communities across the Sunshine State have tornado sirens to alert residents to the presence of a twister, so residents are always advised to have a battery-powered radio capable of receiving weather alerts.<\/p>\n

Forecast models show bands of potentially hazardous weather from Isaias decreasing from late Saturday into Sunday, with drier skies arriving across the region on Monday.<\/p>\n

Copyright \u00a9 2026 Storm Center<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the core of Hurricane Isaias approaches the Alabama-Florida border, the potential for tornado activity is expected to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":423334,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[7212,94364,12298,12299,116,118,117,115,12301,12303,12304,12308,12310],"class_list":["post-423333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-fpren","tag-fpren-severe-weather","tag-fpren-tropical-weather","tag-hurricanestrong","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news","tag-news","tag-wfsu","tag-wjct-fpren","tag-wkgc","tag-wuft","tag-wuwf"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/423333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=423333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/423333\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/423334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=423333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=423333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=423333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}