A tornado struck Villa Tasso in Walton County on Monday evening, the National Weather Service confirmed. No injuries were reported.
- The NWS Tallahassee office said damage in Villa Tasso “is consistent with a tornado” and noted a brief tornado debris signature on radar. The storm touched down at approximately 5:07 p.m. Monday. A formal damage rating is expected Wednesday.
The Walton County Sheriff’s Office and Walton County Fire Rescue responded to the area of Magnolia Street where a severe storm caused multiple downed trees and power lines, leaving many residents without power.
Video shared with Get The Coast from Sandestin showed a waterspout moving across the bay.
Walton County Emergency Management said it received reports of a potential tornado impacting the Villa Tasso and Choctaw Beach communities at approximately 4:45 p.m. and immediately responded to conduct initial damage assessments. Those assessments continued Tuesday.
- “We are thankful to report there were no injuries associated with this storm event, and we know just how fortunate we are,” emergency management officials said in a statement.
Walton County Public Works crews are continuing debris cleanup in the affected area. Officials are asking impacted residents to complete a self-reporting damage assessment form at bit.ly/WCDamage to connect with additional resources. Residents are also asked to place debris in the right-of-way and separate vegetative debris from construction debris into two separate piles.
Emergency management thanked the Sheriff’s Office, Fire Rescue, Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, Public Works, the American Red Cross Northwest Region and Commissioner Dan Curry for their response efforts. Officials also recognized residents and neighbors who helped one another in the storm’s aftermath.
“Storms like this serve as an important reminder that Mother Nature can change in a moment’s notice,” emergency management said. “Please continue to stay weather aware, have multiple ways to receive alerts, and keep those impacted by this storm in your thoughts.”
