ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — Several cars were banged up and damaged during a hail storm Monday night in St. Lucie County.
According to WPTV First Alert Chief Meteorologist Steve Weagle, there were reports of large hail hitting the areas of Tradition and St. Lucie West — along with 50 to 60 mph winds — around 6 p.m.
WPTV surveyed the area on Tuesday and found a car off Shinn Road with its rear windshield shattered from chunks of hail, large dents on the roof and hood, and a side mirror knocked off.
Workers at Accurate Marine Services said the storm sounded like a war zone as it rolled through.
One man said his Ford F-150 suffered 117 dents from chunks of hail. Thankfully, no one was hurt.
#WATCH: Ford F-150 suffers 117 dents from hail storm in St. Lucie County https://t.co/YzL3USxFkT pic.twitter.com/oe7WXDxxob
— WPTV (@WPTV) January 11, 2022
Employees of Accurate Marine Services were organizing inventory when Monday’s ferocious storms rolled through.
"It took everything we had to keep the doors closed. I mean to tell you, it was something like I’ve never seen in my life," said Cassie Hoy.
"It was like it was trying to destroy everything," said Malinda Revels.
For these lifelong Floridians who’ve been through many hurricanes, this was different. They were sweeping ice several inches deep out of their warehouse.
"Ice covered, you could have put some skates and come out here and had fun," Hoy said.
While Melinda and Sassie were taking shelter in the warehouse, a number of motorists were taking shelter under a pedestrian bridge on State Road 70, and quite a few vehicles took a beating.
"I didn’t know about the storm until this morning when we started receiving a flurry of calls," said Misty Greene at Chip’s Auto Glass.
Greene said they were ordering quite a few windshields Tuesday.
"It’s two pieces of glass stuck together by a piece of laminate in between so when it takes an impact, it will crack but won’t shatter and it stays intact and holds up the integrity of the vehicle," Greene said.
Malinda’s vehicle took a lot of punishment.
"All hell broke loose," Revels said. “We have holes all over the vehicle. Windshield in front is busted, took the light out, the mirror on that side."
The line of thunderstorms hit Palm Beach County around 7 p.m., but they were weaker by then.
SPECIAL COVERAGE: WPTV First Alert Forecast
The latest forecast from the WPTV First Alert Weather team calls for mostly cloudy conditions and low rain chances Tuesday in Palm Beach County and along the Treasure Coast with temperatures in the low to mid-70s.
However, rain chances will increase to 40% on Wednesday and Thursday before making way for a sunny and cooler weekend.
