Pinellas: Homes, businesses damaged in Pass-A-Grille

Business owners and homeowners along Pass-A-Grille awoke to heavy storm damage and flooding Monday morning, as it sat as one of the hardest hit communities in the Tampa Bay area.

Pinellas County was the site of several reported tornadoes, and several homes and businesses in Pass-A-Grille suffered significant damage. 

The county declared a state of local emergency this morning at 10:09 a.m. due to the continuing threat and impacts of Tropical Storm Debby.

At the local marina, glass windows were blown out and the steel siding of the building completely caved in. The back of the roof was also ripped off.

Compelling video sent from a viewer showed the tornado striking in Pass-A-Grille. It was taken last night as wind and rain pelted the community.

"Tornado! Tornado! Right there: Tornado," a man says in the video, which you can watch in the player. "We're in the midst of it right now. Oh man, we have a tornado. Holy cow."

County workers were out Monday morning trying to pickup the pieces. Flooding was also an issue, with some roads leading to the beach had as much as eight inches of water.

Other damage reports from the National Weather Service included:

• Three telephone poles down near 16th Ave. and 21st Street South.
• Cars stranded on Gulf Boulevard because of flooding.
• Cars stranded near Countryside Road and US 19.
• Heavy street flooding near 58th Street and 30th Avenue South.
• A destroyed billboard at Gulf Blvd. and Walsingham Road, with debris in the street.
• Broken windows and downed power lines one mile north of the Don Cesar.

From the city of Clearwater:

• There is a major road closure due to flooding at Enterprise Road between Village Drive and Frisco Drive. The water depth ranges from 1 foot to 3 feet, depending on where you are in the roadway. With little or no more rain, the road may reopen late Monday afternoon.
• Other city streets that are currently closed with minor traffic concerns but will reopen soon are Smallwood, Glenwood, Rosewood and Rosemere.

In St. Petersburg:

The city of St. Petersburg is making sand bags available Monday from 3:30 to 8 p.m. and from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Northeast Park, 875 62nd Avenue NE (located at the Cardinal Drive entrance to Mangrove Bay Golf Course).

Ten bags per vehicle are allowed. The city will issue bags for residents to fill with sand and load their own vehicles. (City staff will assist those unable to do so.)  Residents with city-issued bags from previous storms are encouraged to bring them to refill. Residents are also asked to have identification verifying city residency - a Florida driver's license is preferred.

In Gulfport:

The City of Gulfport will provide sand at the north side of the City Hall parking lot at 2401 51st St. S.  Sand will be available until the storm threat has been alleviated.

The city provides the sand, bags, shovels and a unit to help you fill the bags.

Bridges:

Monday evening, the Sunshine Skyway, eastbound Courtney Campbell, and northbound Howard Frankland remained closed due to winds.

Stay with FOX 13 for more updates out of Pinellas County.