FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Residents across the Treasure Coast are still recovering after winds of up to 80 mph ripped through parts of St. Lucie County on Wednesday.
A wind gust of 85 mph was reported on Sewall's Point in Martin County.
The St. Lucie Fire District told WPTV no one was hurt in the storm, but said one family was displaced after a tree fell on their home in Fort Pierce. It was the only home that sustained significant damage, according to crews.
Fort Pierce resident Denise Cotter, whose home was surrounded by branches, debris and knocked-over trash cans, said she's surprised there's not more damage.
"It was wild over here for a while. We had floods. It was like up to here," Cotter said while gesturing to her knees. "It was crazy."
On Hutchinson Island, Kelly Haynes recorded video of her home that showed wind swirling around her pool and outdoor furniture. She told WPTV's Kate Hussey the family was watching television when they heard whistling and looked out the window to see a huge tree snap, nearly hitting their home.
Cotter said the wind looked similar to a tornado.
"You see those chairs over there, those green chairs?" Cotter said. "They slammed against the building and cracked all over the place. It was crazy. It was crazy."
Across the street, Tom Accollo showed WPTV where he took shelter from the winds that were coming up off the inlet, which sent furniture and kayaks flying.
"You saw the pile of broken chairs over there," Accollo said. "I was able to like stand here because everything was just flying past me. I was protected here, but as soon as I stuck my face out, I got hit in the face by hail and rain. It was hurting my eyes."
He was OK, but next door at the Fort Pierce Coast Guard Auxiliary, a shed was reduced to a pile of debris, flattened by wind.
"It's now in a big pile over there," Accollo said. "It had blown off its foundation."
It's one of the damages Mark Reeder, who lives in St Lucie Village, saw while riding around on his motorcycle soon after the storm had passed.
"I went and I checked out the other local neighborhoods to see if other people had electricity and no one did," Reeder said.
Reeder said he got his power back on at about 7 or 8 p.m. Wednesday.
He stopped and talked to WTPV outside On The Edge, a waterfront bar and restaurant.
Just the night before, its employees rushed to close their awning as rain flooded in.
"Couldn't hatch down because it came on so fast," Cotter said. "Liquor bottles, beer bottles, they were all flying."
All of the residents WPTV talked to said the storm came on fast and furious.
"It just like 'snap', you know, here it comes! Wham," one resident named Lori said. "It felt like a hurricane, the last one I was here for."
"I never saw it like that before, that fast, that quick, so much in such little time," Cotter added.
But as the cleanup continued, Cotter and the others said they were both grateful to not have been hurt and are preparing for the next storm.
"Gonna get some sandbags, fill up just in case," Cotter said.
